The TMNT's Excellent Island Adventure
by MedaLink
Summary: When the TMNT, Splinter, April, Casey, two professors, and an orphan girl crash onto an isolated rain forest island, they discover a lost tribe and a great threat to them that connects the turtles to the world's four natural elements.
1. Spiritual Beginnings

Hey everybody! Sorry I haven't been around to update my stories. Two main words: homework and YouTube Especially YouTube. I decided to start writing another TMNT plot that's been in my head for a while, and the biggest inspiration was when I was working at dance camp for a week with an African theme to it. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own the TMNT. If I did, I would have finished the Ninja Tribunal season before showing the Fast Forward episodes. The only characters I own are Prof. Cornelius B. Norrington, Penny, and everyone and everything on the mysterious island of Thear.

* * *

The seas, the lands, the skies, and the molten fiery heart of Earth have always been the key essential elements of the world, within these elements a kind of magic that holds all of its life together. There have been things the world hides; sacred knowledge never meant for human eyes for its own good lay hidden, impossible to reach. A secret island hidden away from the world at the intersection of the equator and prime meridian contained such magic of the world, magic so great yet terrible. 

The bright full moon of the night shown its bright ray of light, as it lay directly above the tribal village of the island. The dark sky's twinkling stars glittered so bright; the black smoke of the tribe's fire couldn't block them out. The men, women, and the elderly of the tribe sat quietly around the fire, waiting for their elderly High Priestess to awaken from her trance in her deep meditation. The younger members of the tribe were sent to bed with the even younger children, but they still secretly watched from behind the curtain doors of their wooden homes. Even in this silence, the High Priestess could still not silence the voices in her mind that contacted the great spirits of the dead that guarded their island to explain their sudden calamity. It was after when the voices silenced that the High Priestess awoke from her trance with shocking gasps and cold sweat all over her face.

The tribe began to speak to each other once again in hushed whispers, but they soon ended when their king silenced them.

"Great High Priestess," the king said in a deep voice, "What have the spirits of our sacred island informed you about our sudden problems?"

The priestess continued to breathe slowly. "Our dry farmlands and sudden sicknesses…" she whispered in her old voice, "The landslides and great storms of rain, thunder, and lightning above…they are not mere coincidence. I'm afraid the great form of the darkness of the afterlife has risen to the mortal world once again. The great demon goddess has plagued our island once more after tens of thousands of years."

The once silent whispers of the crowd now became uproar. It was so loud and shocking, the young had to keep the younger children from screaming in the sudden anxiety. It was them the king had to end the voices once more.

"SILENCE!" he shouted through the crowd with his big booming voice, "The whispers of out guardian spirits do not lie. Our sudden and deadly plague must be because of the curse of the demon goddess who has upset the natural order of the world. However, where there is despair, there is also hope. The great coming of evil has also prophesied the coming of our Spirit Gods, meaning new incarnations have been chosen. The chosen ones of water, earth, air, and fire shall soon be guided by destiny here to this island and vanquish this evil for good."

Everyone soon rose to his or her feet in cheer. They had been told the great prophecy from their fathers and mothers, and they learned from their fathers and mothers, and so on. Their island was in great need of help. Such curses were never placed upon them before, which could only be the work of evil. But the Earth was their home and the guardians of the four elements were their protectors. They knew all too well that greater forces were at work and that soon their great prophecy would come to pass.

The elderly priestess stepped forward. "It is true that the Spirit Gods will be lead here by fate, but consciously, they are not aware of their own power. It shall be I who shall awaken that power and summon them to our home."

The High Priestess soon urged the king and his subjects to follow through the jungle path surrounded by the most ancient tress and silent nocturnal animals. They walked down the moonlit path to the open clearing where their great temple stood at the foot of their ancient volcano. The High Priestess soon went alone to the top of the temple, the summoning point, while the rest of the tribe stayed with their hands clasped together and their heads bowed, while chanting an old incantation too complicated to write as a way of sending their spiritual charisma to their all-knowing priestess. Once she was up top, she began to chant the same incantation but much louder with her arms to the skies as the symbol below her feet began to glow.

With this summon, she pleated for the Spirit Gods to awaken and guide their incarnations to the island. The God of Water to float in the sea; the God of Earth to walk across the earth where the trees and rocky canyons rose; the God of Air to soar in the skies with the winds to dance with the clouds around him, and the God of Fire to rise and race with the tall embers that surrounded him, racing like the blood in his veins. With the priestess's calling, the incarnations of the Spirit Gods would soon awaken in one of the greatest cities of the outside world.

* * *

Freezing to the bone with cold sweat all over his body, he began to shake and toss and turn all over on his bed, mumbling words of terror and confusion. He couldn't take it anymore. He had to wake up. He had to burst his eyes open. He had to scream. And so he did—at the cost of grabbing the rest of his family's attention. 

"Yo, Leo, are you okay?"

Leonardo began to breathe a little better after hearing the voice of his brother Raphael. His other brothers, Michelangelo and Donatello were up looking down at him as well. Soon, his father and sensei, Master Splinter entered his bedroom as well.

"Leonardo, my son," the kind rat said, "Are you all right?"

Leo nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine, really." He clutched his head in pain. "I just had a bad dream, that's all."

Soon, his own hand was removed by Donatello and placed his own hand on his forehead. "Well, it doesn't feel like a fever. You just need a good breakfast to get you started and soon you'll forget all about it."

"Would wittle Weo wike anything else?" the goofy Mikey asked in a joking tone.

Raphael took care of him with a large smack upside the head. "All right, if you're gonna act like that so early in the morning, then I'm gonna have a lot of punching practice."

"Enough, all of you," Splinter said to them, "You will unleash your morning energy during your training. Your brother needs space so he may recover. Now out!"

The rat forced his other three sons out in a hurry and soon Leonardo felt well enough to get up. However, he could still remember the dream so clearly. It actually felt like neither a dream nor a nightmare. It also seemed like both together. Whatever it was, it seemed to call out to him in a way he couldn't understand.

It was a beautiful, crisp morning in New York City. Beneath the sewers of the bustling town, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were training in their underground lair, which of course was part of their daily routine. Now that Leonardo was up and had eaten his breakfast, he was ready to give it his all like his brothers. As the fearless leader of the group, he was always the most focused and the most disciplined. Today, however, he suddenly felt different. He seemed to be caught in a daze for no apparent reason. He felt swifter somehow, and whenever his brothers did score a hit on him, he suddenly didn't feel as much pain. His brothers felt the same. Raphael suddenly felt a whole lot stronger than he use to, Donatello felt more endured and grounded, and Michelangelo was so quick on his feet when he jumped, it looked like he could defy gravity all together. When they were done, they bowed to their sensei and sat silently.

Master Splinter looked at his four sons in a silence mixed with wonder and confusion. "I am very impressed with your training today, my sons, very impressed. You have improved your skills greatly, and yet I sense something different in you now that wasn't there before—something new, yet mysterious."

"It's not that serious, sensei," said Leo," We just haven't been feeling like ourselves lately."

"Maybe we just need some time to relax a bit," Mikey suggested, "You know…up top, in New York, with good air and delicious pizza and burgers…"

Five seconds after lunch and Michelangelo was already begging for food. It just goes to show that anything different about him would be news to them.

Splinter sighed. "Alright, then. I suppose with all of your progress it would be good to go up to the surface for a while. But we must ensure we are safely in the shadows. Donatello, you may go ahead and call April if you like."

The turtles grinned like mad. It had been quite a while since they went up top. Thanks to the great progress in their training though, they needed a break. With a sigh, Splinter was left alone to help make some green tea for him and April while his sons began to grab some things they might like to bring.

After gathering some experiments he'd like to try with April, Donatello dialled her number on his Shell Cell to see if she was able to let the guys over. They knew she would always welcome them to her house. Once the cell started to ring, Donatello prepared to speak, but suddenly, once he blinked, a wave of visions suddenly swept over him. The visions in his mind were basked in a pool of colours, but he could see sudden shapes: sandy beaches, wide cliffs atop of a forest of tropical vegetation, and a structure of an ancient temple ruin. He felt so close to it; he could smell the sweet scents of the rain forest. Once he heard April's voice the phone, the rain forest turned back into his home.

"Hello," April cried on the phone, "Is that you, Donny?"

Shaking his head, he put the Shell Cell to his ear. "Oh, uh, hey April. It's me. Not much to talk about."

After talking to April, he hung up the Shell Cell and took his stuff with his father and brothers. Once they got on their way, Donatello turned around to the lair to see if what he just saw was real. Once Raphael called out to him, he shook his head and followed.

* * *

Okay, not much, but I did my best. So make sure to review and expect the next chapter, where I'll be bringing my OCs into the mix. See ya! 


	2. Penny

Disclaimer: I do not own Ninja Turtles, blah, blah, blah, belong to 4Kids, blah, blah, blah, should make better dubs.

So, yeah, this is where I really start to get into my story. Here's where I introduce my two new characters, Cornelius B. Norrington and Penny. Enjoy!

* * *

It was a few minutes after the clock struck noon when the turtles and their sensei reached April's shop, and Michelangelo was already beginning to die of hunger. Of course, April kindly offered her friends to stay, but she had just received a call that her uncle, August O'Neil would have to stay for a while with a colleague of his from merry old England, so they would have to stay in the shadows for a while. Besides that, it would be a pleasant day for them. Of course, it would be fine up to the point when another story going on in the big city would cross their paths. 

The streets of New York were of course filled with buildings and skyscrapers or sorts, literary a concrete jungle, and between these buildings weaved a maze of alleyways that held the most mysterious things by night, and some did not even enter by day. In a large open space in this web of inner streets, there in the centre was a sort of clubhouse large enough to house several children. And the several children without homes or parents called this place their own.

Little Penny was sitting quietly inside her bedroom fortress filled with as many books as she could fit with other sorts of mystical stuff while she read the pages of a book that told of heroes, dragons and magic. She darted her eyes back and forth from line to line with only candlelight to light up the pages under the blanket walls.

_"The dragon's fiery breath roared across the sky with the intense heat of a thousand suns at the very call of his cruel master, the Black Sage," she read aloud, "The young warrior prince knew he was no match for the tyrant who tried to take over the land of the Sun Kingdom while he sapped away the enigmatic power of the next Rainbow Princess born within the Moon Kingdom. Still the young warrior would not give up hope and continued to fight after taking so many blows. He had to save the girl he loved and unite the kingdoms of Sun and Moon. As he stood, his Golden Sword of Light glowed within his hands with great power, and with it, the great beam of light shot out of his sword and towards the countering black magic of the evil dragon, and with its power, he—_

Little Penny was soon brought back into reality when two boys took away her favourite book snickering.

"Hey, c'mon you guys, " Penny was cried, "Gimme back my book! Give it back!" Penny tried and tried, but the boys kept on teasing her and kept tossing the book back and forth between them.

"C'mon, Tink, it's just a stupid book," said one of the boys, "I don't even know why you keep spending your share of the money on those dumb fairy tales when you could use it for more food and keep the hideout hidden. If the cops find us they'll take us off of our streets and put us back in that crummy orphanage."

Penny glared at the boy, "Well, Spike, that's definitely tough talk from somebody who almost wet his pants that time when the Purple Dragons pasted by. By the look on your face, you looked like you were begging for the cops to find you." With that she stuck out her tongue at the boy.

The boy called Spike just glared at her and walked out of her bunk bed fort and she soon followed him after blowing out her candle. Each part of their hideout was divided for everyone within it with a much larger space for eating and watching the TV that Gadget managed to fix up for them and a little garden for Petal's flowers to grow. Penny of course knew everyone in their gang was called by their nickname, given to them based on their personalities. Spike got his name because he was the leader and toughest in the group; Gadget got his name because he was the smartest and the most handy with mechanics; Petal got her name for her love of gardening; and Penny was called Tink for short of Tinker Bell because of her love for fantasy and adventure—especially in books. The other orphans were playing games while some were sent out to sell some old junk or perhaps a bit of pit pocketing. They of course didn't mind. With no school or adults to order them around, they managed to create a good society of their own and to them, life in the big city was an adventure.

Suddenly, Petal came rushing towards Spike, completely out of breath. "Spike," she cried, "We've got someone here outside of out secret entrance. I don't know who it is, but I bet it's a big, scary Purple Dragon!"

Spike just rolled his eyes. "Oh, quit you're whining, would ya? If any stinking Purple Dragon comes on our turf, they're gonna get it."

Quickly, everyone at the clubhouse rushed for the secret entrance door that to people on the outside would look like a pile of wooden junk. If any child from the group was there, they immediately said their password when given and always checked for any spies or policemen. However, the man that Petal saw was definitely no child, so it was up to Spike to see who was waiting outside.

Slowly, he pulled open the little hole used for spying on the outsiders, but it was too small for him to get the best look, but he knew for sure it wasn't someone from the gang, though he could see for certain it wasn't a police officer.

"Look, buddy," Spike said, "This is our club, so you'd better get out of here or else!"

Whoever was on the other side, they sighed. "Listen, Spike, we've been through this a gazillion times. If you would just tell me the secret password already, I wouldn't have to keep doing this, got it?"

"I'm not telling you nothing!" Spike boasted, "If you want to get in here, you're going to have to—

He was cut off as soon as the man broke through the door, knocking Spike off of his feet, but the kids cheered when they saw the man, who they all knew and named his as the Purple Dragon Slayer.

Casey Jones got down and embraced the kids as soon as they ran up to him and started to give him hugs of affection. Penny of course gave him the biggest of them all, since she loved him like a real father figure. For fighting the Purple Dragons in the streets, they honoured Casey as a hero, and for their gratitude he managed to offer them any food, money or anything else he had on him to help them survive in the city. Spike of course was the only one hot headed enough to stand up to his father-like authority figure equally.

"Hey, we had to find a lot of wood to build that secret entrance way," Spike yelled, "You'd better not ruin it!"

"Who're you, a contractor?" Casey replied with a smirk, "And besides, you gotta remember I'm doing all of this stuff for you guys, but if you get caught stealing, I doubt I'll be able to help ya. Nobody else knows about this place but me, and we've gotta make sure it stays that way."

"I kinda doubt you're the kind of person to talk about responsibility," Spike replied.

"You're pretty much as hot-headed as 'fearless leader' over hear," Penny agreed, while Spike glared at her, "Have you got a lady friend setting you straight?"

While Penny smirked, Casey couldn't help but blush as he thought of a certain redheaded woman. "Uhh…well, I'm surprised you're talking about that kind of stuff! You guys are only eight, y-know!" He just decided to quickly give them the things they need.

He handed over two grocery bags with food, a few dollar bills and coins, a few more blankets and some fans and solar panels for their electricity. He thought it was quite funny how Gadget reminded him so much of Donatello. He even brought a pack of some seeds for Petal's garden, where of course his kindness made her blush. When he was done, he waved good-bye and crawled through the secret entrance.

* * *

About an hour after Casey had left, Spike decided it was Penny's turn to go out and see if there was anything good to steal or sell, despite Casey's warning about not stealing or else getting caught. She was always excited to go out to explore and have adventures in the city. Before she left, she took with her in her traveling bag some of her favourite books, a deck of cards if she ever got bored, some food if she got hungry, and even a pocket knife in case she ran into big trouble. With that she pulled on her aviator cap with the top cut off so it was more of a headband and her bright red scarf for the cold day, and soon she was off. 

When she got into town, she was disappointed to find no new books had come in yet for her in the old bookshop, but she still admired all of the beautiful things inside to cheer her up. She had been quite busy before in the junkyard, looking for something valuable, but without any luck. She even tried to pick pocket, but Casey's warning was stuck inside of her mind, and everyone around her was always alert. She began to walk home with her head hanging low in disappointment, when she spotted many people sitting together with signs in their hands and many valuable things on a stage. Since she was young, she didn't know it was an auction. There was an old man on stage that said he was a professor who studied archaeological artifacts in Britain and came to New York to auction off some old things he had that were of much value. Penny could tell he was British because of his old gruff accent. But the one thing she could not keep her eyes off of was the one thing he was now holding in his hands: a sapphire fairy amulet. To her it was weird that people were suddenly getting up and raising their signs and saying prices, but it seemed like no one was going to get it. So before the gruff old man could decide on the highest bidder, Penny ran up to the stage, jumped for the amulet, and ran has quickly as she could. If she had known how an auction worked, she never would have done it, but now she was hoping to outrun the gruff old man and add the pretty amulet to her collection of fantasy items.

People were watching with a quizzical look in their eyes as a mischievous little girl was running for her life from the old man and the police as they chased her down with the old man continuously calling her a thief and a pest and all sorts of names. Casey was just on his motorcycle when he saw what was going on and recognised Penny immediately and slapped himself in the forehead. He tried to be responsible for them and they weren't listening to him already. Then again, he was just like that when he was eight. So he had no choice but to race them until he got ahead of Penny.

"Penny, look out!" he cried

He stopped the motorcycle in time to catch Penny before she tripped and snatched the amulet for her hand. She looked down in shame, knowing she was going to get punished for sure. But before Casey could speak, the old man took the amulet back and lifted Penny up by the ear. She began hollering in pain.

"Well, I believe that takes care of that, " the old man said with pride, "By George, just what does this little scallywag think she's doing?"

Casey knew he had to something. He knew this guy was going to be trouble. "Look, buddy, please, just go easy on her, will ya? She's just a kid. A lot of kids do stupid stuff when it comes to bright and shiny things."

"Balderdash! If you were any kind of father, you would have taught this girl to be a proper lady a long time ago. Americans these days…"

Casey was dumbfounded at that "father" comment. "Okay, dude, first of all, I'm not her father, and second—

"Now see here, 'dude', I'm not here for fun and games. I was just finishing an auction of some very old and valuable treasures in my family and soon I'm meeting an old colleague of mine and his niece, so you'd better—Oh, good heavens, look at the time! I have to hurry for the meeting. I suppose you're responsible for this young girl, are you?"

"Well, you could say that, but—

"Alright, then you're coming with me!"

Inside the antique shop, April was catching up with her uncle about what had happened since she and Donatello rescued him from the cannibal reptilian world and showing some of her best antiques on sale. The turtles and Splinter of course were keeping to themselves in the shadows. Professor August already knew of their existence since meeting Donatello, but his friend was about to show up any minute, so they didn't want to take any risks. Suddenly, the door of the antique shop opened with the old man carrying Casey Jones and the orphan girl by the ear.

"Oh, Cornelius," August said with a bit of awkwardness in his voice, "This is a bit of a surprise of you…bringing guests with us."

When April turned around and saw those same guests, she gave one in particular the same look. "Casey?"

Casey just looked at her in embarrassment. "Yeah, uh…this really isn't the best time to talk abo—ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!"

The old man known as Cornelius cleared his throat and paid no attention to his "hostages". "I apologise for the intrusion, August, but these two were giving me quite a hard time in the streets." He turned from Penny to Casey. "This little whippersnapper in particular nearly stole a precious amulet of mine and this abominable brute seemed to be trying to defend her. I'm afraid I will have to close my auction early for this."

Soon, he let Casey and Penny go, but left them to land on the floor with a big thud!

Afterwards, the old man introduced himself as Cornelius B. Norrington and April invited them upstairs for some tea, though she made no eye contact with Casey for a while, only because of awkwardness.

In April's living room, Cornelius, August, April, and Casey were sitting together with tea and snacks while Cornelius talked about some of the artifacts he studied in the UK as well as some of the old antiques he possessed. Casey just sat there completely bored, but tried to not to show it. Michelangelo and Raphael were just as bored, since they couldn't do anything while they waited for Cornelius to leave.

"Man, does this guy ever shut up?" Mikey whispered.

They were talking in hushed whispers even though they were told many times to be silent, but it didn't stop Penny from hearing them, thinking maybe they were robbers or ghosts. Quietly, she opened the door to April's bedroom, and the turtles were forced to stay quiet and hidden.

"Alright, Mr. Ghosts," Penny whispered bravely, "You'd better come out of Miss April's room or I'm going to have to make you come out."

Mikey could help but chuckle. "She thinks we're ghosts."

Leonardo and Splinter were soon forced to cover up his mouth while Penny turned their way. They were hiding in the closet, and when Penny opened it, they managed to get up a little higher. Raphael would've given him a smack over the head if he weren't in another corner.

"I know you're in here, and I know ghosts don't like the light, so you'd better go away or else."

There was a lamp right next to her and even that would blow Raphael's cover. He started swinging his arms as to make sure she didn't go anywhere near it. But no matter how much he silently whispered her to move, he was losing his patience.

"Kid, move it!"

Suddenly, as his voice grew, the lamp suddenly exploded and luckily, Penny managed to duck before she was hurt by any exploding pieces. The whole room was now lit up when April and the others rushed into the room, but at least it gave them all the chance to hide in the closet.

"What is the meaning of this?" Cornelius screamed. "Good lord, that lamp looks like the Blitz in here."

April picked up little Penny with her jacket covered with the stained glass pieces of the lamp. "Penny, the light was off. Did you trip over the wire by mistake?"

"I sincerely doubt that, Miss O'Neil," Cornelius replied with a scoff," Once a trouble maker, always a trouble maker."

"I didn't do it, honest!" Penny screamed when she saw the awful look in Casey's eyes, "It was these ghosts. They snuck in you room and they made the lamp explode."

April knew Penny must have been referring to the turtles without seeing them clearly, but doing more damage to the lamp than simply tripping over the wire seemed confusing to her.

"That's it, I've had enough with this nonsense," Cornelius exploded, "I'll be taking my plane back to England soon, and when I do, she's coming back with me to a good, disciplined orphanage. Mr. Jones, there's no point in hiding the fact this girl is an orphan and I shall quickly take her off of your hands for both our sakes. Miss O'Neil, August, I bid you good day."

And with a huff, he left out of the door, leaving Penny the slowly burst out in tears. Casey just sat down looking glum while April and her uncle just looked baffled.

"Sorry about that, April," August said, "He's very easy to set off like that."

With that, they slowly decided to act like it never even happen and have Casey introduce Penny to them, with Penny quick to apologise.

* * *

On the day Cornelius was leaving for England, the turtles and sensei watched them begin to leave on August's private plane for his world expeditions, taking April and Casey along after they agreed to come with him in exchange for all the trouble that had happened. The turtles wished they could join them, but they didn't want to get caught up in any more trouble. But little did they know they would become the very centre of an unexpected expedition. 

"I'm sorry I almost got us caught, guys," Raph said quietly, "I never expected to make that little girl pay for it."

'Cornelius is pretty much as hotheaded as you, Raph," Don chuckled.

Raph just growled. "Well ya know, if Mikey hadn't made so much noise, we never would've been suspected by that little orphan in the first place. Ain't that right, you bonehead?"

Michelangelo was standing right next to Raphael, but he didn't reply. As the wind passed through him, he stared at the plane silently.

"Mikey?" Raph called.

When he saw his brother staring at the plane, he soon realised Michelangelo was not in thought but in a trance.

"Mikey, are you all right?" Leo asked.

His voice could not be heard. None of them could be heard. The wind was whispering a million voices into his head. So many soft but powerful voices danced in his head that not even Raphael screaming the word "pie" to the top of his lungs into his ear penetrated he voices. Then the voices turned into a hypnotic commanded of calling, and they were directing to the plane.

Suddenly, Mikey was dashing off to the plane at breakneck speed without being aware of running in the open. His brothers and father carefully had to follow him, telling him to stop. Just then, a man was walking right toward him, but then they crossed paths, the man walked right through him.

His family gasped. "Did you just see what I saw?" Don said quietly awestruck.

"You'd have to be blind not to see that," was all Leo could reply.

"All I know is Mikey has a lot of explaining to do," Raph growled with the intolerance of confusion.

Carefully, Leonardo, Donatello, and Splinter followed Raphael into the cargo hold where Mikey enter the plane. When they got inside without anyone seeing them, they managed to see Raphael hitting Mikey over the head.

"Ow!" Mikey cried, "What the shell did you do that for, Raph?"

"Listen, Mikey, you've got a lot explaining to do about bolting off into this plane!" Raph growled.

"Bolting off? What're you talking about? I didn't…Uh…why am I in a plane?"

Raphael was about to hit Mikey again when Splinter stopped him. "My sons, that is enough of this!" He sighed. "Even since these mysterious dreams occurred, you've all been acting very strangely."

"Sensei, what are you talking about?" Leo asked.

"Leonardo, it was not only you who had those mysterious dreams. Your brothers have each have these dreams earlier than you had that night."

"Even you, sensei?"

Splinter shook his head. "I do not know what sort of presence has entered your minds, but it is effecting you greatly in strange ways, and—

Suddenly, he was caught off when four strange shadows flew out of the ground and made their presence know. They had no specific shapes to them and they each had different. One smelt like seawater, the next of sandy dust and vegetation, another of fresh air, and the last of burning smoke. When Splinter tried to defend his sons, he punches and kicks went right through them, but they had no trouble with their own. He was sent flying right into the wall.

"Guys, we have to protect Master Splinter!" Leo cried.

As they circled around their sensei and drew their weapons, the shadows charged and the turtles, prepared to defend. When they tried to strike, however, their weapons went right through, sending then back against the wall when they were open for attack. When Donatello struck the one of vegetation scent, however, he sent it flying into the crates.

"Guys, I've figured it out!" Don cried, "There's specific ones that each of us can only fight. I don't know why, but whatever they are, we have to make sure they don't reach the cockpit!"

The fighting went on for several hours, but luckily, they managed to keep track of the ones they could each only fight thanks to their scents. However, they knew that shadows weren't suppose to have specific scents to them, but they were fighting with magic, so they would have to get some answers soon enough.

Meanwhile, it was a quiet ride for the others. Casey and Penny sat with the same gloomy face, but luckily, Penny managed to receive forgiveness from Casey, so no one had to get in a fight. While Cornelius began to reassure Penny of how great it would be to live in Britain, they began to hear noises from the cargo hold. When August set his plane on autopilot, they went to see what all the noises were and saw the turtles fighting with the strange four shadows.

"Good heavens!" Cornelius screamed, "What the devil is going on?"

When the turtles turned to see them, the shadows slithered right by them and right into the controls, shaking the plane and moving it way off course. August tried to move the controls, but it was stuck.

"It's no use!" he cried, "I get a hold of the controls!" Then he was sent flying onto his back as the controls exploded and the plane was tipped into a nosedive at the speed of light.

"This isn't good!" Don cried, "We're all going to crash!"

As they all huddled together, the four turtles were soon caught in a bright wave of light and energy, and then, everything went black.

* * *

My gosh, this was longer than I expected. Uhh…so, yeah, cliffhanger. (gets into the special cliff-hanger-hater-proof dome) Don't worry, I'll have the next one up soon. But since this was so darn long we might have to redefine soon, so R&R. 


	3. The Island

Disclaimer: Still don't own the TMNT. Only own my own OCs. (yawns) How many times do I have to keep saying this?

Okay, so yeah, third chapter, plane crash, don't know if they're going to make it out alive. Of course you should know the answer. So…yeah, here's the third chapter. Enjoy!

* * *

_A strange blackness swirled, thicker than air…a wavy light at the very top…the darkness was pulling back to a bottomless endlessness…forcing upwards…for an eternity…to reach that light…before the darkness entered inside…to consume the body and release the spirit…breaking through the other side, the light of the sun awakens…_

When the feeling of life entered his body once again, Leonardo weakly opened his eyes while trying to breathe. He slowly got up on his hands with the rest of his body still weak while he began to cough up sand and water. Carefully, he sat up and rubbed his forehead.

"Ugh, my head," he groaned, "What the shell happened?"

When his senses came back to him, he saw he was sitting on sandy white open beaches with the clear blue ocean ahead of him and the heat beating down on his green skin. He got up and turned his head from one direction to another and saw the horrible condition the completely crashed plane was in. He gasped and ran as quickly as he could to the plane, only to find everyone on the beach. He saw his brothers, sensei, April, Casey, August, Cornelius, and the little orphan girl Penny lying unconscious, but he was glad to know they were all still alive. Soon they were all starting to wake up, and Leonardo went to his sensei first to make sure he was all right. It was strange, but he didn't care. They all survived.

When Michelangelo was up on his feet, he looked at his hands, and his whole body. "I…alive…" he whispered. "I'm ALIVE!" He started cheering and throwing sand everywhere like confetti, then kissing the sand for his joy of being on land, then started running around so excited of life to the point he even began kissing Raphael. The results…weren't pleasant.

As Penny and Cornelius were starting to get up from off of the sand, they looked at the turtles and the rat with separate feelings. Penny felt a sudden thrill of joy and excitement in her heart as she gazed at the arguing humanoid turtles like characters from her books while Cornelius stared at them in horror and confusion, continuously shaking his head to make sure he wasn't going mad. When the confusion got to him, he finally got up and shouted,

"WHAT IN BLOODY BLAZES IS GOING ON HERE?"

At once everyone stared at him in silence as he continued to stare at the terrapins and their father. They also looked at Penny, who had her mouth hanging open in a grin.

"Okay…"Leo said slowly in the awkwardness of the time, "I guess we've got a lot of explaining to do."

"Now I can hear you talking clearly!" Cornelius screamed, "This isn't right at all! I must be going bloody mad!"

As he kept on blubbering, Penny managed to get up the courage to walk over to Donatello and started to feel his skin by poking him.

"So, umm…do you guys come from another world where there lots of animals that walk and talk like humans? Or…maybe you're superheroes with magic powers!" She began to keep talking faster and getting carried way until Donatello finally stopped.

"You've got some wild stories there, kiddo, but we come from Earth, and it's because of science we're like this."

"So you _are_ like superheroes who guard the streets at night!" She smiled at first, but then began to look glum. "But I was hoping it was magic."

"Magic, ha!" Cornelius burst out, "Never in my life have I heard such rubbish. Honestly, child, a girl such as yourself should spend more time learning to be a lady with proper manners and conversations at tea, not having your nose stuck in such wild books of pixies and wicked witchcraft."

"It is NOT witchcraft!" She wanted to charge at him, but she knew she would be held back, so she just blew a raspberry at him with her tongue.

"O, gracious child, act your age!" said Cornelius, not paying any notice to her.

When she stopped and turned her back to him, they finally were silent again and got back to the matter at hand. Their plane was in flames and there was no way to get back to New York or England. The worst was that this island felt so mysterious to them.

"Where do you suppose we are?" August asked, "The plane went completely off course, and according to the navigation system, we were heading towards the crossing of the prime meridian and the equator before those…things crashed the controls."

"I don't remember there being an island here," Don replied, "Then again, with those shadow things and everything else that's happened, anything seems possible now."

They all turned to Casey, who was looking into the supplies of what was left of the plane. "Looks like the crash set off all of these flare guns here. I guess that means we're going to have to find another way to get off of this island."

Don began to think. "We might be able to find some wood we can use for a raft big enough for all ten of us, but we could be here for a long time, so we might be risking a lot of fruit-bearing trees.

Then, Mikey got up and prepared to speak, "And remember: if stranded-on-a-deserted-island stories have taught us anything, it's that we all have to function as a society and not let our overpowering natural instincts get the best of us, so no resorting to savagery. Raph, Casey, that means you guys." He was then knocked out when a fruit was thrown at him in the forehead.

"Good thing there's plenty of fruit here that's just right to eat," Raph grinned as he tossed a fruit in his hand like a baseball.

Then Splinter stepped up between them. "Although it's a bit harsh, Michelangelo does have a point. We have to make sure to work together if we want to survive on this treacherous island."

"Master Splinter's right," agreed Leo, "We're going to have to start off by searching the jungle and maybe find a place to build camp."

Everyone nodded in agreement, even Cornelius.

"Okay then," April said, "If we're going into an unknown jungle, we have to stick together. And we don't know what kind of wild life there is, so—

While she was saying this, April was getting up from the ground, but as she got on her left foot, she cried in pain and fell down again. Everyone crowded around her as she clutched her ankle.

"April, you okay?" Casey asked in concern.

When she removed her hand from her ankle, her palm was stained with blood. "I'm okay, really," she said ignoring it, "As soon as I get up, I—

When she tried to get up again she winced in pain and fell again, with some of the blood now staining the sand.

"April, really, you shouldn't force yourself," her uncle said, "We need to treat that ankle before it gets infected."

Casey sighed. He wanted to help save April, and it didn't look like anyone had any bandages. So without saying anything, he took off his shirt and ripped it neatly to make a bandage for her. April couldn't help but blush as she gazed at his strong chest while he tied it around her ankle to cover the wound. When he returned her gaze, he had the same redness in his face.

"Well, you need help, don't ya?" he said with an odd shacking voice. Then he suddenly got up on one knee with his back to her and his hands outstretched behind him. "Here, get on my back. I can carry you until that ankle gets better."

Now her face was even redder. "Casey, I—

"Look, do you need my help or not?"

Sighing, she managed to wrap her arms around his neck as he hoisted her onto his back. Their faces were still red and Penny couldn't help but giggle a little.

"Okay, let's go" said, Leo. And with his sword drawn, he carefully led the group into the unknown jungle.

* * *

About an hour later, Leonardo was still hacking away at the leaves in his path while the others followed. April's ankle still had not healed, but she found it quite comfortable on Casey's back, though she did find it annoying having his hands on her butt. 

"Thanks for helping me out, Case," she finally said after the long silence.

"Hey, no problem April," he said cheerfully, "You know I'm always there to give you a hand."

She began to force out a laugh at his comment. "Great, great," she said, "Though maybe next time you could give me a hand somewhere else? Maybe above my waist?" The last part she said was in a mutter.

"Hey, I'm doing the best I can here!" he growled.

"I'm just saying."

Mikey was getting grumpier and grumpier. "Will you guys please stop talking already?" he whined, "I'm dying for some meat over here!"

"Mikey, as soon as we find a good place to camp, we'll make sure to go hunting for food," Leo shouted from upfront.

"Oh, no doubt of that," Cornelius said sarcastically, still not getting used to the jungle and mutated animal scene. "Maybe while we're at it, we can use what's left of the head and stick it on a spear as a sacrifice for some flesh-eating demon for goodness' sake!"

"Will ya stop with the 'Lord of the Flies' already?" Raph yelled back at him, "It's driving me crazy over hear!"

"Alright then, if you all want to act like savages then, be my guest. Hopefully you'll try not to kill each other while I'm gone."

"Okay, that's it!" Raph growled in his face, "You and me are having words!"

But just before Raphael could make any real threats, he felt something nuzzling at his ankle. They all looked down to find a strange turquoise creature with furry, floppy, tri-forked ears and a small spiral-spike on its body with little paws, feet like a rabbit's only more circular and a small tail.

Mikey screamed like a woman when seeing it. "AHHHHHHHH! Get it away! Get it away! Get it away!"

Penny was the only one who wanted to stay close to it, and when she did, she cuddled it in her arms. "Aww, it's just a lost little animal," she said cuddling it, 'Yes it is! Yes it is!"

As it nuzzled its head into her scarf, August decided to get a closer look at it.

"This doesn't make any sense," he quietly said, "A creature such as this shouldn't even exist. I've never seen anything like it in my life."

Suddenly, the little creature jumped out of Penny's arms and ran away switching from on twos to all fours.

"Wait up, little guy!" Penny called and was soon chasing after, leaving everyone else to follow her.

The odd creature and the orphan girl were running at top speed while everyone was trying to call her back. Since they were afraid of losing sight of her, all of the branches got in their way, though this didn't bother Donatello much at all for some reason. Soon, when they reached a clearing, they all stopped and panted after finding Penny through the last blanked of leaves. She turned around and looked back at then with a huge smile on her face.

"Guys, guys!" she cheered, "C'mon you guys, you've gotta see this! You're not going to believe it!"

She began to lead them forward like a young child while they tried to catch their breath through the blanket of leaves.

"Can we at least…get a…five minute break or something?" was all Mikey got out.

"Come on, Penny," Leo said with the same amount of heavy breaths, "Just hurry up and show us what you want to—

But the site soon took the rest of his breath away. The turtles and the gang were being lead uphill through the jungle during the start of their adventure, and now their eyes soon beheld the site of the island they were stranded on. Deep down below the hills that surrounded them were covered in rain forest as far as the eye could see, and beyond that the clear blue ocean swept all the way to the horizon. The mountains were swept with all sorts of vegetation and tall waterfalls that fell majestically. Finally, they saw to the northwest of them a tall volcano towering higher than any of the other mountains. It was a breath-taking site they wouldn't forget.

"I've never seen such a more majestic island before," was all Splinter could say.

"So beautiful, yet so mysterious," whispered August, "No human eye could possibly take all of this in at once."

"Didn't I tell you guys?" Penny bragged, "This is gonna be like a big adventure!" She jumped and cheered with delight and sang, "We're going on an adventure! We're going on an adventure!"

While everyone else was so amazed at this island, the four brothers were silent.

"Guys," Leo whispered, 'you have that overpowering feeling inside you too?"

The three others nodded. "We were unaware this island even existed," said Don, "and yet as we gaze down on it it's like we've seen it before."

"This doesn't make any sense!" shouted Raphael, "Why the shell does this place feel so…familiar?"

"I wish I knew…"

Donatello sat back down in deep though on the edge of the cliff to get a better idea of what was going on as a turtle of science. As he sighed, he suddenly felt the earth around them tremble about and soon it was shaking so much the others felt it two. Suddenly, the whole edge of the cliff they were standing on fell apart, leaving them to fall downhill.

It all happened so quickly, nobody had any time to talk, but scream. They all closed their eyes shut, as they fell through the air. Donatello knew he had to open his eyes to find out what was going on, and he soon discovered a large pile of dirt floating below then, but light enough for them to think they were falling through the air. When they feel to the earth, it was like falling through snow. Nobody seemed to get severely hurt, but it was still a pain in the shell.

"Okay, what the shell just happened there?" Raph growled after he managed to get up from the dirt pile.

The others managed to get up calmly while dusting themselves off.

"I don't get it," said Leo, "why did the edge of the cliff suddenly collapse? It was fine a moment ago."

"All I want to know is why we keep having those moments where we're suppose to die and don't!" Mikey yelled. "Just what the shell is up with this?"

While Penny shook her head about to get all of the dirt out, she suddenly spotted the little creature in the middle of a wide open clearing a few feet ahead of them with fruit trees and a waterfall.

"Hey, you guys," she called, "Look at this! It looks like our little friend just found us a good place for a camp!"

They didn't want to believe Penny again this time after what happened, but when they saw the little creature waving to them in front of the shady clearing, they noticed the sun was going down, and they were due for a rest.

Mikey sighed. "I don't know about you guys, but I am beat. Besides, that little guy doesn't look too harmless, does it?"

Leo nodded in agreement. 'The cliff was stable before, so it didn't look like a trap. I guess we can start setting up camp and getting some food along away."

Soon everyone was heading out to the clear opening to set up camp and for a good rest. But as the sun was coming down on the island, the shadows began to show themselves from the fading sunlight and in those shadows, the mysterious spies watched them carefully, ready to make their move.

* * *

Well I hope this is satisfying enough for you. Soon my other characters will be revealed and later on the adventure will really begin. So read and review and the next chapter will be up soon. 


	4. Mysteries of the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own the Ninja Turtles. I only own my OCs because 4Kids can't see the imaginary copyrights on them.

Okay, so on to the fourth chapter. What will happen to them next? Find out! By the way, I'd just like to say that one of my other main OCs in this chapter is based on Aaron Smiley, another TMNT authoress, and if she's reading this, I just want to say, we all miss you on the forums and we hope you can talk to us again. And don't worry; you'll like how it'll turn out if I can get the personality right. Enjoy!

* * *

The sky was now in a deep twilight when the turtles and their friends got their camp ready. They had all split up to find some firewood and fruits good enough to eat, and even went out to find some fish and meat wherever they could. Of course, whatever they killed was given a proper burial. 

Luckily, they managed to find their way back to the beach where the plane crashed and somehow, there were survival kits that managed to survive the crash, so they each had their own blanket and a few tents for the night. After they got back, Michelangelo was rubbing two sticks together over the firewood to see if he could manage to get one spark.

"This is how a true woodsman does it!" he said with pride, "The old-fashion way!"

Raph just gave him that dark look again. "C'mon, Mikey, you've been at it with those sticks for half an hour now. You think one lousy spark's just gonna pop up like that?" It was here he snapped his fingers and suddenly the two sticks were burning up, and in fear, Michelangelo dropped them on the pile and the whole fire pit was lit. It was a shock even to Raph.

"Ha!" Mikey laughed, "You see, Raph? It's all in the skill." Then he just stuck his tongue out at him.

Raphael wanted to punch him, but Leo held him back. "C'mon guys, let's just enjoy the scenery while we're out here and get the fruits and roast ready."

And soon the fire did its part on roasting the meat and they had a very appetizing dinner. Since they had to ration on what they could, there were no chances at seconds and everyone took the leftovers in great care. When they were done, they all sat around the fire in the quiet night.

"How long do you guys think we're going to be here?" April finally asked.

"It all depends, April," Don answered, "We could be here for a long time and who knows if we'll even be able to get back home. According to the navigation system from before, this island isn't even supposed to exist. Somehow I doubt there's a chance we can successfully get a rescue signal, and if we did build a raft, the closest land we could get to would be in Africa.

"It would be a long journey back to home whatever way we take," said August, "We might be able to stay here long enough until we can think of something."

They were all silent again for a while. "Perhaps we should change the subject to lighten our spirits," Splinter thought, "It is hard for one to think if both the mind and heart are clouded."

"I know! I know!" Penny shouted, raising her hand up quite high, "Why don't we tell ghosts stories? That's always fun at a camp-out!"

"This isn't going to be another one of your wild stories, is it?" Cornelius asked in a tired voice.

Penny just stuck her tongue out at him again. And so they decided to tell ghosts stories for the time being until they were ready to go to sleep. Even Cornelius decided to tell some rumours of haunted houses in England, even though he kept saying they were obviously absurd every ten sentences. While they were thinking of good stories to tell (Penny was by far the best) the four brothers were sitting quietly again in thought—not even Michelangelo was saying anything.

"What is the matter, my sons?" Splinter finally asked them, "Normally, you could go on for hours narrating a horror story with great enthusiasm. I can tell you are each deeply troubled about this island."

"It's nothing, sensei, really!" Don said, trying to convince him, "I think we're all just really tired, that's all."

"Yeah, two near-death experiences in one day isn't exactly healthy for us," Mikey added, trying to put the enthusiasm back in his voice, "I think I'm just going to hit the hay." He walked back into the tent he was sharing with his brothers, but everyone could tell he was insecure because of the way he held himself in his arms, pretending to be cold. They were getting worried about him, because he normally wouldn't act so anxious and try to hide it.

"I think I'm going to go to sleep too," Don said, stretching out his arms and heading to their tent, trying to give his brother some comfort.

"Me too," Leo said after Don.

"Me too," Raph said after Leo.

As they went into their tents, the others realised it had gotten quite late. And they were feeling very sleepy themselves.

"Looks like we should call this a night as well," August said, putting out his sleeping blanket with everyone else.

"But I'm not sleepy," Penny moaned, "Can I just…stay up for a few more minutes?" If was of course obvious since she had one big yawn in the middle of a sentence.

As she was drifting off to sleep, Casey picked her up in his arms and carried her to her tent. "C'mon, Penny," he said softly, "I know you're as free-spirited as one can get, but even free spirits need to sleep. Don't worry, you're gonna have plenty of adventures tomorrow."

As she crawled inside before sleeping like a log, she took her favourite book from her bag and nodded off as Casey tucked her in. While he did this, April couldn't help but admire how much he really cared for her. It was a side of him that she had never really seen before. She smiled at him as he came back and fell down to sleep.

There were only two tents they had found that survived the crash, so while the youngest in the group slept in them to keep out the cold, the adults slept outside under the stars. For April, it wasn't much good. Her blanket wasn't keeping out enough of the cold, and she kept wrapping it around herself, but to no avail. She kept shaking and chattering her teeth and could barely even stay asleep. She seemed to be the only one with a bad blanket.

As she shivered, Casey watched her and felt guilty that he felt so warm in his blanket, but he was quite tired. When he gave in to his conscience, he sighed, got up, and walked over to the shivering April and placed his blanket over her. She felt much, much better afterwards, but when she realised this, she turned her head and saw Casey walking back to his spot, lying down on the hard ground and keeping himself warm in his own arms. Now he had it much worse than April did, because he was still completely shirtless from helping April before. She got up and limped over to him (her ankle was still healing) and sat right next to him, trying to wake him up.

"Casey," she whispered, shaking him, "Casey, are you awake? Casey?"

He mumbled something and turned his head. "No, Ma, I don't wanna go to school today…" Eventually he woke up and found April staring right at him. "April, what are you doing up?" he asked, rubbing his eyes to shake away the sleepiness.

"I…can't sleep," she half-lied, "I just…wondered why you gave me your blanket." She found now she was having a hard time talking to him.

"Well, you were shivering there like crazy, so…I just...wanted to do something nice for ya." He found he was having the same problem.

"I just wanted to thank you for helping me out," she said quietly, "Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

He began to think for a minute and as he looked at the cliffs where their waterfall was, he got an idea. "C'mon, there's something I want to show ya." And so, quietly, he took April's hand and led her to the cliffs. He explained it was up on top of the cliffs above the waterfall and helped her up the steep cliff to the top. She was doing a great job of climbing the rocks, but when Casey reached the top, she had almost slipped and fell off, but luckily, Casey managed to catch her, but when he pulled her up, her fell on his back with April falling right on top of him. There was an awkward silence between them, but once she got up, she was dazzled by what he wanted to show her.

The sky was lit up by millions of groups of stars in the night like so many twinkling lights. She had never seen so many in her life; there were too many to count. They skies in New York always blocked the sky with the light pollution, but now that there was darkness and cleaner air, the tiny lights all over the sky took her breath away.

"Casey, it's beautiful…" was all she could whisper.

"Yeah, I saw a good spot up on the cliff before it collapsed," he said, "and I wanted to show you how bright the sky really is when you're out in places like this."

"It's amazing," she said, "I remember Uncle Augie always used to take us out on camping trips and he always brought me to the clearest spot and showed me the constellations. They always make me remember the good times I spent with him before he disappeared, and it makes me feel better now that he's back."

Casey nodded. "I always used to look up at them when I was at my grandma's old farmhouse when I was a kid. When I was glum, I always used to look for a shooting star until I got so tired, I couldn't even remember why I was sad."

At the mention of their childhood history under the stars, April got a large smirk on her face." Speaking of kids," she said slyly, "You never told me exactly how you met Penny."

Casey was a bit stunned to hear this, but he might as well explain it to her. "Well, it's just…it kind of happened a long time ago before I met Raph. There was a bunch of Purple Dragons picking on a bunch of helpless kids, and when I saw what was going on, I had to do something about it. I decided to take my chances and bust some heads, and when they ran off, they were really grateful about it because those creeps were threatening to hurt them and turn them in to the police. Turns out they were all orphans, who just came together and try to make themselves a home and didn't want to be around any adults. Since they needed help and I was the only one they could trust, I promised to help them any way I could. Penny was one of them and the one those Purple Dragon creeps tried to hurt. That's why she looks up to me like a dad."

April stared at him, long and quietly, but also seemed to be moving closer to him. "I'm kind of surprised," she said, "I really had no idea you were a big softy for kids."

Casey just looked away in embarrassment. He was the kind of man to hide his emotions under a tough exterior for fear of vulnerability, since he always thought with his heart, but once April got under his skin, the redness was back in his face.

"It's-s not a big deal, okay?" he said in an embarrassed tone. "I just couldn't leave them alone, y-know?"

He was afraid April was going to keep teasing him until who-knew-when, but instead, she placed her head on his shoulder and smiled him.

"It's alright, Casey," she whispered to him, "I know you can be really hard-headed at times, but I really love it when you show how gentle your heart really is."

Casey smiled back and embraced her as they silently watched the stars in the sky float above them, until the darkness of the night tired them so much, they fell asleep in each other's arms with the blanket tightly wrapped around. It was a night they wouldn't forget for a long time.

* * *

Back at the camp, everyone was so tired; they didn't even notice Casey and April leaving. Even Splinter, who would normally watch over to see any signs of suspicion was so heavy in sleep he couldn't hear any rustling in the jungle. This, however, would become a disadvantage for protecting his sons. 

All four turtles were sleeping in the tent with each of their own blankets to keep them warm for the night. They were all quiet, not one of them stirring in the night under the comfort of the tent. Michelangelo, however, was an exception. He kept tossing and turning while clutching his head, which was covered in sweat from the horrors he heard in his mind. A million voices were speaking to him at once, voices soft and powerful as before, but now Michelangelo was able to hear them without their hypnotic effect. They scared him so much; he almost looked like he was about to scream.

"No…" he moaned, "Please…stop…stop it…stop it! I said stop it!"

"Mikey!"

He woke up screaming like a girl again to the shaking and call of his brother, Leonardo. He looked up and saw them all looking at him in concern.

"You okay, bro?" Raph asked.

"Y-Yeah…yeah, I think I'm okay," he said trying to convince them. "I think I'm just talking to myself again." Suddenly, after he spoke, the voices were back again, even though he was awake. He couldn't even hear himself think. "I'm…going to get a glass of water now. Bye!" And suddenly, he rushed past his brothers and out of the tent. They had no choice but to follow him.

Even if he was the most agile of the four, Michelangelo was suddenly a lot harder to keep up with. They couldn't even hide without almost losing sight of him. Then, when they reached a small pool of fresh water falling from a small waterfall, Michelangelo sunk his hands into the pool and began to splash himself with so much water in panic it looked more like he was bathing himself. He began to breath heavily, but there was no stopping the voices. They were louder now and more ferocious, and they rang through his mind like an air horn. He clutched his head in pain and went down on his knees. His face was so full of fear it looked like he would even start crying. His brothers had to help him.

"Mikey, are you okay?" Don asked in concern.

But Mikey paid no attention. "No! Stop it! Get out of my head!"

Suddenly, when his brothers got close enough, Michelangelo had accidentally hit Raphael right on the nose, and only when his brother cursed out loud did the voices stop and Michelangelo see what he had done.

"Mikey, what the shell is wrong with you?" Raph growled angrily at him. It had to take Leo and Don's might just to hold him back.

"Raph, I'm sorry!" Mikey cried, quick to apologize, "I didn't know you guys were behind me. But those voices…they just wouldn't stop. It was like a million of you trying to yell at me at once."

"Oh, I'll give you something to yell about!"

"Cut it out, Raph!" Don said to calm him down, "Look, I'm sure Mikey was just hearing things after having a bad dream. You know how exhausted we were to not even stay up with the others."

Mikey suddenly gave him a look of anger. "Okay, I get it," he said, "You're too tired to listen to ghosts stories, but you have all the energy in the world to somehow lift up wads of dirt into the sky! That's right, I saw it!"

The others looked at him very quizzically, but Don's face was frozen in shock. "Wait, you mean you saw that too? And why are you blaming me for it?"

"So you don't remember a thing," Mikey shouted at him, only with an anger that came out of confusion and fear, "Leo probably doesn't remember a thing either since he's the one who could somehow raise some giant tidal wave to slow down the plane and shield us from the blast. How the shell do you think we survived that thing?"

"Mikey, what are you talking about?" Leo finally asked, "All I remember from the crash is wishing I could save everyone, and Don just said he saw whatever you were talking about before."

"Uh, duh, you guys passed out _after _you started glowing!"

Now the brothers looked at Michelangelo with a surprised look of confusion, and Raphael wasn't going to stand for it.

"Mikey, I don't know what's up with you," he yelled, "but with everything that's been going on lately, you're certainly someone to talk for someone who runs out in the middle of the open and walks right through someone like thin air!"

Mikey had the same confused and fearful look his brothers had now. "Wh-what? What are you talking about?"

"Raph, we promised to keep that a secret, remember?" Don reminded his hotheaded brother.

Raph turned away from his brothers. "Yeah, well I'm sick of what's been happening to us lately, and ever since we got on this island, nothing makes sense anymore! Will someone please just tell me what the shell is going on here?"

Raphael was now about to go above his point of keeping control of his anger in a physical manner, and with the constant confusion inside the brothers, they looked like they would all break out in fighting. But before Raphael could even clutch his hand into a fist, a circle of flaming arrows were shot from the shadows and were aimed around them to form a flaming ring of fire to trap them. Suddenly, they began to hear a soft ululating around them, first by one voice, then another, and then many more, getting louder every moment. Then, faster than they could blink, an unknown, but powerful group of warriors had flown swiftly from the shadows and into the ring of fire to face them. Their skin had a dark colour to it, darker than the soil that their feet were standing on, but lighter than the ash that came from the fire. They were armed with spears and swords, but it wasn't just male fighters in the ring. They could tell by the features of others that there were also strong women, like Amazonian warriors. One girl was in the front, wearing a light coloured mask on her face and a necklace with rainbow coloured feathers around it and rainbow beads stacked on one another as the charm. For some reason though, from what Leonardo could see in the firelight, there was something that didn't seem right about her eyes.

"Intruders," she called in a gentle, but very powerful voice, "You're trespassing on our sacred island! Lest you be the Chosen Ones, you'd better leave or else we'll have to take you lives!"

The turtles just looked at each other in shock. Somehow the way she spoke didn't seem right at all; it was mainly the fact they could understand every word she was saying.

"Did you guys get all that?" Raph asked.

"Surprisingly, yes," was all Don could say.

As the girl and her tribe of warriors came closer, the turtles had no choice but to take out their weapons and be ready to defend for their lives. However, despite the difficult situation they were in, Leonardo was the first to speak to the leader.

"Listen to me," he said, "We mean you no harm. We crashed onto the island by accident, and if you have anyway of getting me and my family and friends home, we'll gladly take it."

He hoped she would be able to listen to him, but instead, she swiftly moved her spear a few inches from his neck, although it seemed a lot closer than Leonardo would have liked to have it.

"Don't take this personally," she said, "But do you really think I'm that stupid? You're probably some of those pirates or treasure hunters or corporate workers who cut down all the rain forests from the outside world I've heard so much about. You greedy outsider humans make me sick!"

Humans? Why did she think they were humans? But before they could ask any more questions, the warriors charged, and had no other choice but to attack.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the camp, Penny couldn't sleep. In her books, she could always tell by the mood of the words she read into her imagination that something bad was happening, and she felt that same feeling right now. She got up and went out of her tent to tell Casey she had a bad dream in hopes he could take her around the jungle and show her there was nothing to be scared of so she could find that bad feeling for herself. But when she got out, she found Casey, April, and the turtles were gone. 

"Casey?" she called out to the darkness, "Miss April? Leo? Donnie? Mikey? Raph? Where is everybody?"

Because her shouting was so loud in a cause of panic, she had accidentally woken up Splinter, August, and Cornelius.

"I say," Cornelius groaned, "What the devil is going on here? Can't a man get any shut-eye without being awoken by a little hooligan such as yourself?"

Splinter of course felt differently by her shouts. "Young Penny, what is it that troubles you?"

"I don't know, but I think something bad is happening!" she yelped in fear, "Casey, Miss April, Leo, Donnie, Mikey, and Raph are gone, and I don't know where they are, and I think something really, really bad took them away!"

"Good Lord, child," Cornelius yawned, "It was probably just a bad dream. Too much reading of those silly books, I'll bet it is."

August shook his head as he moved the flashlight around. "I'm afraid little Penny is right," he said, "I can't find my niece or the others anywhere."

"I sense something terrible afoot," said Splinter, "We must go look for them. I fear for the safety of my sons."

And as soon as they gathered up their supplies, they headed off to find them. With the worry of their missing group, they had no trouble walking around and getting tired, and with Splinter's strong sense of smell, they'd be able to find them in no time. Unluckily, though, they were heading the opposite way.

As they continued to walk, they began to see more peculiar creatures of the night. Some were brightly coloured, some dark. Some had big eyes, some small. Some were creepy crawlies, some with wings, but they weren't your typical animals. Each one was more different then the last. But as they carried on, they became more worried.

"This isn't good," said August, "At this rate, we'll never find them."

"Well, good riddance, I say," laughed Cornelius in a way nobody like, "I mean I care for you niece, but I think the brute would be better off on his own. And as for those turtles, they must have some kind of wild father to let them wander around without ay discipline. He must be some sort of bloat in the head!"

Splinter cleared his throat angrily. "I happen to be right here, you know."

Cornelius was silent after that. He then later cleared his throat and said it was only joke. Nobody else bought into it.

Afterwards, things only got worse. Splinter realized now that the scent seemed to only lead them away from the turtles. They were about to back, when Penny heard a little mix of a call and a squeak from the path. It was the little creature again from before. She gladly ran up to it and the creature gladly hopped into her arms.

"Aw, you're just a little adventurous thing, aren't you?" she said cuddling it, "That's it, from now on, I'm going to call you Ukili!"

The little Ukili nodded excitedly at the name, and then jumped out of Penny's arms, and moved its head from her to the path and them took off.

"Hey guys, I think I know where they are!" Penny called, "Ukili is trying to show me. I think she wants us to follow her."

As she follows after the creature, the others followed without question.

"Wait, that little fiend is leading us?" Cornelius asked with uncertainty, "And how do you know it's a she?"

"It's just a good feeling I have," she said.

Soon Ukili (who actually was a she by the way) had lead them out of the way of the thick jungle, and they all gazed in silence at what was in front them: a huge temple that looked centuries old.

"Amazing," August gasped, "there must, or at least used to, have been an ancient civilization here."

Soon, Ukili had entered the temple and Penny didn't hesitate to follow her in. The others were right behind her as soon as she got up the old stone stairs and into the temple.

The temple was glowing in the light of the moon through the open windows as soon as they entered inside. With some help of the flashlights, they were able to see the strange markings on the walls that August took into much fascination. When Splinter got a strong scent of the scent however, his face was in a greater shock.

"Something's not right," he said, "The scent of my sons is so powerful in here it would be as if they were right here in front of us. And it seems to get stronger from down below.

At the mention of this, they immediately followed Splinter through a doorway that lead to the lower chambers of the temple. They didn't stop to find any ancient artifacts, for all they could find was much of the ancient writing on the walls. When at last they came to the very bottom, the scent was so strong now, Splinter had to cover his nose. He thought it was even stronger than when Michelangelo and Raphael had refused to bathe for days. When they entered the last chamber, the sight dazzled them.

On the walls, there was more ancient writing, but the scripture centred around four unknown figures on the walls. A ring of waves surrounded one; then another was in a circle of earth and stones; a third was in the centre of a ring of wind; and the last in a circle of flames.

"This is incredible," August said, "These characters must be some sort of gods to the native tribe, or perhaps figures of an ancient prophecy."

Although he was hardly what you would call an explorer, Cornelius was intrigued by the figures, as he was an archaeologist. "If I understand these figures correctly, they appear to each hold the power of one of the four elements: water, earth, air, and fire. Who knows what they are exactly."

Penny seemed to look at the figures worryingly. "Don't you think something really weird is going on with these guys? I mean, if I didn't know any better, I'd sort of think they almost looked just like—

But before she could finish, there was a loud band in front of them, and a thick layer of smoke surrounding. Neither of them had any time to observe what was going on, because as soon as they had inhaled the smoke, they grew weaker and weaker, until they collapsed and everything went black.

* * *

Wow, that was long! Well, yeah, more cliffhangers. I think I'm going to get into a lot of trouble with people. Well, yeah, I hope Aaron gets the chance to review this and I hope she'll be able to come back to the forums and such. We all wish her good luck! 


	5. The Ancient Prophecy

Disclaimer: I do not own the TMNT. I only own my OCs, and if anyone says otherwise, then we're going to have to have a little talk (brings out a baseball bat)

Okay, so basically everything is explained in this chapter for the gang as they finally come upon the mysterious tribe of Thear. Hope you'll enjoy! And if Aaron Smiley's reading, hi, and I hope you'll like it!

* * *

The deadly flames of the searing fire still blazed like a blinding light around the terrapins as the native warriors were beginning to close in on them. They clutched their hands tightly on their weapons, and as soon as the girl began to strike, they began to attack. 

She began with a swift charge at them, but they managed to dodge with ease. They began to try and strike her down as well, but as they got close, she swiftly ducked and hit them hard. She seemed to be the type to wait for the attack and dodge at the last second with ease, but at a distance, her aim was a bit off. Leonardo was wondering why she was so strong with close range attacks, but pathetic with long range, but she kept interrupting his thoughts with quick attacks. They were sometimes quite close to getting at good hit on her, but they were soon blocked by one of her other warriors, which she seem to detest very much.

"What do you guys think you're doing?" she growled, "I can handle this myself, you know!"

They of course didn't listen to her. With one warrior at a time, they tried to make it a fair fight, but the girl felt discouraged at the times she was left out. With frustration, she charged at the turtles again, but with her guardians and the brothers, it now seemed to just be between her and Leonardo now. She kept charging and thrusting her spear at him now, but he of course had a keen eye and managed to dodge her attacks, but when he tried to strike her with his katana, she rolled right past him and managed to trip him off his feet. She tried to stab him now with her spear, but he soon managed to catch it between his katana in an X-shape pattern and twirled the spearhead away from him, so that when it struck, it had pierced right through her mask. When Leonardo got up, he saw the mask fall from her face and crumble to bits and was thankful the spear didn't even touch her head. But when he at last saw her eyes, he gasped. She could tell he saw her now and her warriors gathered around her. Before they were able to call on another strike, however, the low, loud call of a blowing instrument was heard, and they all turned in its direction. One of the warriors whispered to the girl, who sighed and followed her followers as they sprinkled some strange blue sand on the fire, and suddenly, it had disappeared along with them as they ran into the darkness.

"Well, that was weird," said Mikey after a long silence.

"I don't know how long it'll be before sunrise," Don said, "But we should be able to find out where those natives are headed before Master Splinter and the others find out that we're gone,"

So they agreed to go after the native warriors at a slow pace to make sure they weren't being watched, and soon they forgot about their argument during the night and were more concerned about their fighters.

"I still don't get who the shell those natives were," said Raph, "especially that girl. I mean, she's got great skills and all, but did she actually think we were humans? I mean, come on, her distance aim was one thing, but she has seriously got to get those eye holes checked out on that mask of hers!"

"She wouldn't have been able to see us anyway," Leo said quietly, after finally realizing the truth about the girl after gazing into her dark eyes silently in battle, "She's blind…"

* * *

The heavy feeling of sleep had vanished away from little Penny as she heavily opened her eyes and yawned quite loudly to her surrounding. Still dazed by sleep, she would've thought by the early rising sun that she was back at her old hideout and expecting to see the other orphans around her, until she felt her back on something hard and felt her arms and ankles bound to something and found she couldn't move them. Worst of all, although she wasn't afraid of heights, she soon realized to her horror her body was tied up on a stake that bounded her a few feet from the ground. 

When she found her head was free to move, she saw that everyone else, Splinter, August, Cornelius, and even Casey and April were bound on the same poll, with their heads drooping in sleep.

"So they must have used some sort of sleeping powder to capture us," Penny whispered. She then tried to struggle as much as she could and started kicking the wooden pillar in hopes of getting free and perhaps use her pocketknife to cut the ropes once she climbed back up and free the others. But it was no use. She then decided to try to wake them up to warn them of their capture. "Hey!" she called out, "Guys! Wake up! Wake up! Something really bad is happening to us! You've gotta wake up!"

It was a slow process, but it was beginning to work. Casey, who managed to fight off the sleep first, had woken up to the terrible danger he was in, and began to yell angrily.

"Hey, what the heck am I doing up here?" he yelled, "Whoever did this, you'd better untie me right now or else!"

April and the others had a more difficult time waking up, but once Casey was yelling his jaw off, they were up in a flash.

"Wha…What on earth is going on here?" April asked in a tired tone.

"I'll tell you what:" Cornelius growled angrily, "The filthy savages of this island have managed to trick us and trap us all on this pillar in hopes of sacrificing us to their god! Well those filthy savages certainly won't make a sacrifice out of me, no they won't! No siree!"

"Okay, dude, you're really starting to get on my nerves with this whole savage thing!" Casey had finally said.

"Well, if you have a plan of escaping, I'd certainly like to—

But before they could finish, they began to hear the beating of drums. They soon saw that the native denizens of the village were preparing to check on their captives in the early morning light now that the effect of the sleeping powder had worn off. From out of a large tribal hut, their came a large, dark man who looked to be the leader of the tribe, along with an old woman who wore a long, silver and turquoise robe and held in her hand a large wooden staff with the top twisted to hold a beautiful jade jewel. As they approached them, the king pointed at them and yelled angrily with the tribe's shouts of agreement. The only problem was…they had absolutely no idea what he was saying.

"Did any of you guys get that?" Casey asked. Of course everyone shook his or her heads. "Listen…to…me!" Casey said slowly and loudly in hopes they could understand them. "We are _not_…intruders…We cannot…understand…. a word…you guys…are saying…so—

As he was talking loudly, the old woman had come closer to Casey, and he soon stopped as the woman's fingers had suddenly begun to glow. He could slightly feel that energy pulsing as the fingers were placed on his forehead and had feel the cool breeze on him again once the woman had placed them on her own throat. Then, she took a jug out of her belt, put the strange liquid to her lips, and once she had swallowed it, she took a deep breath and slowly, she blew out a pinkish mist that surrounded them and the whole entire village. Once they had all inhaled it, there came a big surprise once the old woman had spoken.

"There, now I have enabled us all to be able to speak and understand each other in the same language," she said, "It should be able to last until you find a way off of the island."

Penny's eyes were dazzling in amazement. "Cool!" she gasped, "How did you do that?"

"Magic, little one," she answered, "A magic passed down by our ancestors since the eldest knew this place to be called 'home'."

"Balderdash!" Cornelius growled, "There's no such thing as magic! Why it's all just a bunch of—

But both Splinter and August soon kicked him in the shins. "Tell me, wise woman," Splinter said politely to her, "Have you been able to find four young terrapins around here? I fear my sons are in some sort of danger."

"Our warriors have said they have fought something of the sort, but they had to retreat as soon as we had discovered you, so I believe your sons are safe. If they care about you that much, I have no doubts they're coming for you even as we speak."

"High Priestess Yoona," the king growled, "do not give them any more information then they need to know. Our warriors are guarding the entrance to the village with great care, and if they come anywhere near my daughter, I will have each of them slaughtered by my own hands!"

Splinter couldn't help but growl loudly at this comment. "My sons and I know the way of Bushido, and I assure you they will not even touch one hair on your daughter's head."

"I refuse to understand your methods. The people of my village have shielded the island with magic for fear of any danger to come to us from the outside world. You have no idea what secrets lie within these jungles!"

"That must explain why we weren't able to find this island on the navigation system," August gasped. "Please, we really don't mean any harm. We crashed here by accident and we really would like to get back home. The culture and history of your island is tempting, but we will go without a fight."

"My Uncle Augie is right," added April, "If you can just tell us where the others are, we could all try to find a way to get off of this island."

But it was no use convincing the strict king, who wouldn't listen to them whether they were kind or not. As soon as they had opened their mouths, the king moved the blade of his sword inches away from Splinter's neck and five other warriors had done the same with the others.

"I'm afraid I have no tolerance for outsiders!" he growled.

But before he could make any sort of move, something had knocked the sword right out of his hands, leaving Splinter unharmed. The other warriors turned their blades to where the thing came from, and the captives were relieved to find what had knocked the king's sword out of his hand was Raphael's sai. They soon found the four turtles enter the scene, weapons in hand.

"Let our friends go," Leo growled at the king, "We can settle this peacefully, but if you harm even one of them, it's going to get serious!"

The king just glared right at them, with cold, angry eyes. "Seize them!" he ordered to his men, and after they called their battle cries, they charged at the turtles, who were ready to defend themselves.

Each one of the warriors was swift with powerful strikes, perhaps even enough to match the skills of the turtles. Although their blocks were effective, the tribal warriors managed to find open spots to attack the turtles had never even thought of. They had used the chances to knock them off their feet and could have finished it with a fierce pierce into their skulls if they hadn't been quick enough. Once Raphael had gotten his sai back, he was more effective with knocking his enemies down in one shot. His brothers managed to stay swift, grounded, and in speed and aerial safety. But Michelangelo was soon taken down when he was among the treetops, a tribal warrior had made a cord for him to trip on by shooting a tied rope on the trunk of a tree near a branch; Leo was caught off guard when his swiftness caused him to lose sight of an oncoming punch from behind (it was starting to make him rather dizzy after a long while), and while Don was still staying strong, a multiple group attack at once was enough to take him down with a brutal beating. With Raphael remaining, all he could do was defend, but soon caught the sight of his brothers down on their fronts with blades shoved very few inches away from their necks.

"Leo! Donnie! Mikey!" he cried, "Let them go!"

He rushed towards them in hopes of setting them free, but the other warriors had dashed at him and threw at him punch after punch until his head was hanging low and he was covered in bruises.

"Raph, forget about us!" Leo had cried, with the result of the blade coming closer to his neck. "Get Master Splinter and the others out of here and save yourself!"

"Oh, you're willing to sacrifice your life," Mikey said in a sarcastic tone, "But did you ever think about Donnie and me?"

"Mikey, this really isn't the time nor the place," Don replied back to him.

Raphael was growing short of breath and almost about to fall under the weight of the rest of his body on his feet. When he looked up, a blade was moved right up to his neck.

"You have violated the sanctity of our village," the warrior said to him, "Because of that, we will make sure your brothers suffer before you are joined with them in the realm of souls."

Raph's fists were clenched tightly and showed his teeth in a fierce growl. He felt so hot right now, he felt as if his whole body was ready to burst into flames. "I said…let…them GO!"

What he had done next had sent everyone around him into a wave of shock. As he growled, his body was compressing into a ball and glowing a bright red hot, and when he screamed at the top of his lungs, he unleashed his body with a large ring of fire that nearly blinded everyone, spreading it so far with such a fierce force, that even those who were far away enough could almost feel their skin burn just from the heat alone. They had all closed their eyes, and once they opened them, they saw the ground was a dead brown, with ash covered all over it and some embers still remaining. Most who came into contact with the explosion of fire managed to survive, but all of their eyes were put on Raphael, who after regaining his breath, had looked around at the damage he had done and gazed down at his hands.

"Wha…" he gasped. "What did I…How…the shell…?"

Before he almost collapsed, his family gasped and managed to get away from the captors and caught the weak turtle from falling on his face, still feeling the unnatural immense heat on his skin. Splinter even managed to break through the ropes that had been weakened by the flames in order to help his son.

"You see, you see?" Mikey screamed, "This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"

They were all lucky to hear after a long, lung-busting cough, Raph managed to whisper, "Shut up…Mikey…"

Of course, the ones most in shock were the tribal village. They continued to stare at the weakened terrapin for a long time, even after the others managed to break through the rope and join them. Then, their eyes had widened in shock, as if they had come into realization of something as they looked upon the other brothers. Then they did another shocking thing: they each all fell on their knees and bowed to them.

The turtles and the others just watched them silence.

"Okay…" Leo said, "What the shell are they doing?"

Then the king rose to his feet and walked to them, now with a look of joy and shame in his eyes. "I pray to you, please forgive my rashness, for I only did this for the safety of my village. If I had known, I would never have even dared to touch you. We have been waiting for you, O Chosen Ones!"

Then, he went back on his knees, and cried out with his villagers, "All hail the Chosen Ones!"

The turtles and the others just stared at them with their mouths open in huge gaps. There had been a long silence after that.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on just a minute here, time out!" Mikey cried, "You mean to tell us that you were just about to kill us for crashing onto this unknown island and then suddenly my bro just unleashes a ring of fire at you guys—which is still the freakiest and yet coolest thing I have ever seen in my life—and them suddenly you're on your hands and knees, worshipping us like gods!"

After the villagers had gotten back up on their feet, the High Priestess had come up to them. "I am sure you are mystified by these sudden events of change, but all will soon be revealed to you. Come, we will take to the sacred temple at the other end of our village and we shall explain to you everything."

The pillar in which they had been captured was of course at one end of their village, and when they had been brought to a wall of vines opened to them, they began to see just how beautiful the village really was.

The village homes of the people were at first very hard to find, because only shops of trade merchants and other large wooden buildings rested on the ground. The rest were hidden among the branches of the large trees, connected together by rope bridges and twisted roots shaped out like stairs. They could see the children running among these bridges and over and under larger, lower roots, with either little dolls or wooden swords. The women holding their young babies and the elderly on their canes waved down toward them as their king passed, and some of the warriors were excused to climb up the root-stairs and cross the bridges to reach their large tree homes and go back to their families. Behind the homes was a giant waterfall for drinking water and many fruits trees with farm fields in the open sunshine, only a few kilometres away from the summit of the volcano, right behind the village temple.

"This is incredible," whispered Don, "I never seen such a beautiful village before."

"And to think, all Raph had to do was unleash some fire-power thingy from his body in order for all of them to listen to us!" Mikey laughed.

Of course, no one had laughed back. Although Raphael had regained some energy, he was still feeling unwell, and the first thing they wanted was to find a place for him to rest and perhaps find a doctor. Of course, they also needed to find out how it was he did that in the first place. Along the way, Ukili managed to find Penny again, and for a long time, she never left her side again as she crawled into her backpack with her head popping out.

The king and his men soon stopped at the large stone structure that was the temple Penny and the others had discovered last night. Just by looking at it, the turtles had an odd feeling inside of them.

"This is the ancient temple of our village, in which its scriptures and symbols have told us of the prophecy of your coming," said the king, "It is here that I, King Zohra, and our High Priestess Yoona, shall explain everything to you and hope to open your eyes to what awaits you on our island home."

Curiously, they followed King Zohra and High Priestess Yoona up the steps and inside the temple, which appeared to be a lot bigger that it had last night. In the natural sunlight, they soon realized that the temple had more passageways then they saw in the dark and they found there was a lot more gold and artifacts in the corners of the rooms and staircases. When at last they came down to the room way down below, the turtles, April, and Casey were dazzled by the scriptures and four figures on the walls, but as soon as the brothers stepped foot in the room, the figures began to glow and the scent Splinter had caught last night was so powerful, he began to cough and had to breathe through the sleeve of his old robe.

"This is our most ancient chamber, which all of our wisest priests and priestesses have come to practice in the teachings of our ancient prophecy," said Yoona, "Long ago, when the world was still a young, our eldest ancestors lived on this island together in harmony, where they cared nothing for the outside world and wished to continue living in this blissful life. But little did anyone know that our island lied on the very centre of the map of the world, which they soon realized afterwards was a connection point between our world and the spirit worlds of the other side, which also prospered us the gift of magic. But after time passed, a demon goddess passed through this connection and threatened to consume the whole world. But when we had lost all hope, the good spirits that had protected us had risen forth and banished the evil goddess back to the dark world of the other side. These spirits each held four of the world's natural elements: water, earth, air, and fire. Fearing more spirits could break through, we used the magic to seal away the island from the outside world, so no one would threaten us from outside, and in return, we would protect it from the inside."

"It's very interesting, but what does it have to do with me and my brothers?" Don asked.

"Spirits cannot fight in our world as what they are. The Spirit Gods and the demon goddess need incarnations in which to use each other's power for their purposes. The Spirit Gods only choose the purest hearts they can find, which I now believe are yours."

The turtles weren't surprised. With all of the adventures they had been sent on and all of the villains they had defeated, how could they not have pure hearts to be chosen by the Spirit Gods? They also took the guess they had no memory of this sort of thing because it was only the spirits who had them. They were just the bodies.

"Don't think of yourselves as mere puppets," Yoona said, reading their thoughts. " The Spirits greatly admire pure hearts and desire to help their incarnation's good intentions with their powers if in exchange their incarnations help us in our dire need. It isn't just our island that's in trouble. If the demon goddess gets through our shield, she could even cause the apocalypse. She has power to wipe out nations that's ten times greater then what you call nuclear weapons.

Everyone gasped and understood the great trouble they were all in. The turtles now saw what they had to do and would gladly give a helping hand whether their world was at stake or not. It was second nature to them to serve justice wherever they could.

"Alright, we understand," Leo said in a calm, serious tone, "Just what is it that you need us to do?"

"Our scriptures now hold the power for you to fully realize your full potential with your powers. One by one, you must find your power by touching the figure that connects with your heart the most. Then we shall see which element you hold."

After listening to the priestess, the brothers decided Leonardo should go first. As he stepped up to the four figures, he closed his eyes in meditation to find the right spiritual connection for him.

Splinter had taken a step closer to the wall and Yoona, taking guesses as to what power his sons each held by their personality. _"Leonardo is the most focused and disciplined of my sons. His mind flows swiftly as well as his technique, but at times it can be as calm as a windless ocean."_

At that moment, Leonardo had touched the figure of the ring of waves, and suddenly, he felt a wide surge of power flow through his veins, as if a wide spread of rapids was flowing in his blood. When he flung his arm into the air by a wide spread of energy, a great wave flowed with it and when he stopped, the wave exploded into a rain shower.

"_This shows my son, Leonardo has the power over water,"_ Splinter finished.

When Leonardo went back with cheers from the rest of the gang, Donatello decided to go next. The figure in the ring of waves had stopped glowing, so only three were left.

_"Donatello is the wisest of my sons, his mind always grounded on finding a solution or a strategy, never losing focus on it. He also has a large respect for the nature around him."_

After Splinter though this, Donatello touched the figure in the ring of stone and earth, and soon, he felt the same surge Leonardo felt before. When he raised his fists in triumph, two towers of earth ran up beside him, and then back down when he walked back to his brothers.

_"With that, there is no doubt, my son, Donatello has the power over earth."_

Once Donatello came back, Michelangelo was jumping and down to go next, running up to the two figures left and choosing which one to decide on.

_"My son, Michelangelo isn't the most focused or determined, be he's quite a free-spirit, always going wherever the wind leads him."_

Once Michelangelo had decided, he chose the figure in the ring of winds, excited to feel the surge of power flow through him. Once it was over, however, he just stood there, looking at himself.

"Well, that's weird," he said, "I don't feel any differ-ahh-ahhh-ACHOOO!"

As he sneezed thanks to the dust around the temple, he was sent back flying right a rocket towards the back wall of the room, crashing shell-first into it. When he sat back down on his rear, he sniffed and said, "Your turn, Raph."

_"With a spirit like that, it's quite certain my son, Michelangelo has the power over air."_

Raphael was able to get most of his energy back, and by the process of elimination, he went right up to the figure in the ring of flames, which of course he wanted in the first place.

_"Though not much more focused and free-spirited as his brothers, my son, Raphael is definitely the most passionate of the four, always thinking with his heart to its full extent."_

Once Raphael had touched the last figure, the energy he could feel in his veins had made him so wild, he began throwing red hot, burning punches in the air, causing everyone to duck away from him and Leonardo to put out the flames he was making.

_"Of course, it's quite obvious my son, Raphael has the power over fire, as he has been described as being hot-headed."_

While of course the others were happy to discover the new powers of the turtles, Leonardo and Raphael were still fighting with their own. Donatello even had to raise a large wall of earth to pull them apart from each other. When he and Michelangelo managed to get them to settle down, they forgave each other and laughed about it.

"So, now what?" Leo asked.

"Now that you have awakened your powers," said, King Zohra, "it is time for the celebration to begin!"

* * *

Okay, so yeah, now the turtles have all discovered their powers: Leo has water, Don has earth, Mikey has air, and Raph has fire. That was the best I could do to describe how their personalities match the elements. And now you've also discovered that the warrior girl's blind, and she'll make a bigger appearance in the next chapter. I won't tell you any more about her until then, but she's the one based on Aaron Smiley, so you might figure it out. Still hoping to get the personality right. If only somebody could say hi to her for me. (Sigh) Oh well, R&R, everybody! 


	6. The Princess Taliama

Disclaimer: I do not own the freaking TMNT! Do I really have to keep saying this every time I update a chapter? I'm really asking this.

Okay, so the chapter gets a bit lighter in the mood to the point where…nah, I'm not going to say anything. I'll just let you find out for yourself. Hope you like it, and a big, fat hello to Aaron Smiley again. I keep doing this because I miss you and I don't even know when you can come back to us yet! (Cries) Well, I hope you like the chapter! See ya!

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As the king and High Priestess Yoona lead the turtles and the others back into the village, there was much cheering around them, since someone had just left to tell them the news. Michelangelo threw kisses to his adoring "fans", especially to the young women of the village. Raphael could have smacked him, but he was too distracted by the fame they were all getting. They were still amazed to have these new powers, but still didn't know how they slightly had them before. Yoona explained to them when she had called out to the Spirits, a tiny bit of uncontrollable power was at their disposal, but now that they had fully awakened them, they could control them as they pleased. This now explained a lot of the occurrences that had happened to them from before, and they were happy now just to put it all aside. Now they were being lead to another stone building, but this was the home of King Zohra, his servants and the princess of the village, who they wanted to meet soon. 

As they entered, they were welcomed greatly by the king's servants who showed them a tour of the king's home and dressed all of them in ceremonial clothes as the people of the village gathered inside the dining room for the big feast. When they saw all of them, they realised the morning's events made time fly by so fast the sun was now beginning to set when all of the villagers had arrived.

As they all took their seats, the crowd cheered as the turtles in their ceremonial warrior garments walked out to the stone tables and benches to begin the feast. Splinter, August, and Cornelius were dressed in robes for the wise men of the village, much to Cornelius's pleasure, though his was quite itchy. Penny came out wearing one of the princess's hand-me-down dresses with Ukili wearing a lavender coloured ribbon around her ear, and now, they were waiting for Casey and April to join them at the king's table.

Instead of doors, they had curtains to walk out from, and they could see April's feet shuffling behind it from the halls to the women's change rooms from the left.

"Umm…is it really okay for me to go out in this?" she asked, quite shy about what she was wearing. When she finally got up the guts to go out and not dishonour their hosts, everyone gasped in amazement.

April's hair was now hanging down to her waist with colourful feather hairpins put in it that were similar to the necklace they saw the warrior girl wearing. She was wearing a beautifully patterned top that covered her chest and a long skirt that was cut to show the sides of her legs until it reached a few inches below her hips. She was wearing jewelled bracelets, wristbands, ankle bands, and a beautiful ruby necklace, along with very beautiful sandals to top it all off. Once her friends began to say how they all admired it, she felt less embarrassed about a few of its revealing features.

They were now still waiting for Casey and the princess to show up, but they found Casey right behind the curtain that led to the men's change rooms.

"C'mon, Case, you're going to miss out on a great feast here!" Raph called out to him. "What's up with you?"

"I'm not coming out!" Casey shouted from behind the curtain.

"What?" Mikey gasped, "You can't possibly be serious! They're gonna have great food here! Funny looking, but still food none the less!"

"It would be very impolite to pass on their banquet, which they've worked so hard on to prepare," Splinter added.

"No, I mean it guys," Casey yelled back, "I said I'm not coming out, and there ain't nothing you can say to make me come out there!"

The turtles grinned widely as they realized there was no other choice. When they saw there was nothing they could _say_ to make Casey come out, they got up and went through the curtain, and forcibly pulled and pushed him out, where he was fidgeting a lot to get out of their custody. He was dressed in green and red warrior paint shaped like triangles on his face, arms, and legs, and heavy fur boots that were part of some spare clothing used for the special guards in the king's stone palace. He wore iron wristbands that, to him, almost weighed a ton and around his waist he was wearing a leather loincloth that covered his waist right down to his knees with an iron belt around it. To him, it looked like a furry skirt or a bathroom rug.

"Oh come on, you guys, I look ridiculous!" he cried, embarrassed by the garments he was wearing. But when he turned to April in her clothes and she in turn turned to him, they both turned away, completely red in the face.

April, however, was later having another annoying problem, when many of the younger village women started coming closer to Casey, telling him that they admired how he looked. Casey didn't say anything, but April had crossed her arms and gave the girls and Casey the glare of death.

"I don't know too much about grown-ups," Penny said right next to her, "But you're not acting all jealous about Casey and those girls, are you, Miss April?"

April turned back at her, attempting to smile, "Jealous? Why would you think that? I'm not jealous, I'm just…very irritated." That was the best thing she could say before unleashing the glare of death again, where Casey had now noticed and looked sick to his stomach.

"She's jealous," said Penny to Ukili, who had nodded in agreement, and so both decided to wait until April was done looking evil. Even the turtles had to step back away from her for a while.

Suddenly, they had heard calls from the shell-like trumpets of the natives, and all had become silent as two main guards stood at the centre door that lead to the king's throne room. It appeared now that the princess was preparing to join them.

"Now, great Chosen Ones of the Spirit Gods and loyal companions of the outside world," said the king, standing up from his chair and facing the doorway, "I would like to introduce to you my noble, gentle daughter, the heir next in line to the throne of the island of Thear, the princess Taliama."

As the guards lifted the curtain for the princess to enter, the turtles gasped. The princess was a tall, skinny-fit young girl who was actually no younger than the turtles, and appeared to hide a strong, highly confident personality under the silent princess exterior they saw her in now. She was wearing a silky white top and a long skirt that went to her silver-braced ankles, but they could see she was also wearing baggy white pants underneath it. She wore a tiara of rainbow coloured feathers that went back against her dark hair, but when the turtles saw the rainbow necklace and her pale green eyes, they knew at once that the princess was the warrior girl they had met before the previous night.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Mikey gasped. "That blind girl is the princess? How the shell could she be the princess after she nearly ki—

But before he could finish, Leonardo was suddenly very quick to cover his mouth as the king gave him a confused look and the girl gasped silently, but slowly found her way to the table, giving them evil glares.

"Uhh…I'm sorry; my brother must be mistaking your daughter for someone else!" Leo cried, more loudly and shaky than usual.

"I'm not surprised by that because of her wounds," the king replied, "Many of my female warriors had similar wounds from the fight they had with you last night, but the High Priestess told me my daughter merely got those wounds from falling down the stairs. She has to know she needs to be careful because of her blindness."

The guests in the room gave her looks of pity, but the turtles knew the truth. It looked like there was more to this blind princess than what met the eye.

"My young daughter," the king said with his hand on her shoulder, "Perhaps you would like to introduce yourself to the Chosen Ones who stand just right in front of you."

The princess bowed her head politely to the turtles, "It is an honour to meet you, great saviours of our tribe," she said in a quiet, gentle voice, "I have the utmost faith that your powers will grant this world hope and prosperity once more." Her eyes, however, seemed to speak differently. _"Okay, so you figured me out. You'd better not tell my father about this or else!"_

The turtles gasped as they heard the voice she spoke with in her mind. They didn't know how she was able to do that, and Raphael was about to demand an explanation when Leonardo started holding him back.

_"Man, what are you thinking, Leo?"_ he screamed in his mind, "_Don't you have any idea what this so-called princess did to us? Well, I ain't lettin' her get away with this!"_

_"Raph,"_ Leo called back in his head, _"If you could just shut up for a minute, we can ask her about it later. I'm sure she'll be happy enough to talk to us." _

"_Wait, how can you hear what's going on in my head?"_

"_I think this another part of our powers,"_ Don said so no more confusion could be brought about.

"_Guess this a bad time to start singing the 'Oscar Meyer wiener' song, huh?"_ Mikey said, which of course brought on a thick awkwardness.

_"See, there you go!"_ the princess said to them again, _"I can explain to you later, just not when my father's around."_

They could have had more chances to talk to her, but once she was seated, the cooks were ready to bring out the feast. On the dishes they were serving special foods they had never seen before: fresh fruits and vegetables, new recipes for grain foods hot from the oven, dark-blue liquids that appeared to be the native wine, and mouth-watering meat and steaming fish that still smelled natural to them. There was much more on the platters that were being served to them, but Michelangelo had no time to count as he dove right on in to the tongue-pleasing goodness. Raphael was eying the meats he took, still not used to what he was being served because of the undiscovered animals, but he watched Michelangelo and Donatello dig right in to the meats and veggies. He guessed Donatello was already used to the tastes because his earth powers were native here. But when he looked at Leonardo, he saw that his brother had nothing on his plate, or even touch the food. He just kept his eyes locked on the princess, who was eating almost as enthusiastically as Michelangelo, but wasn't sloppy at all.

Leonardo wasn't sure why he kept staring at her for so long either. Since he had first caught sight of her, he had felt a strong, uneasy feeling in his stomach, and now that he had discovered her true identity, the feeling seemed to get worse. All he could do was smile and gaze at her. She of course didn't see Leonardo staring at her, but she could sense his gaze and looked away, with a hint of red in her face.

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After the feast, the sun had finally set and now the moon was filling the sky with light, along with the bright stars that surrounded it. A great big bonfire rose from the centre of the village where the celebration had turned into a dance. Drums were played to raise the spirits of the dancers while Yoona and the other priestesses performed a ritual that would bless the land in their celebration. In the excitement of the celebration, Casey had managed to politely shoo away the flirty young village girls and finally managed to find April. 

"April, there you are!" he called out, "Man, you wouldn't believe how hard it was to find ya with all those other girls hangin' around me." But to his surprise, she just gave him the cold shoulder, "Hey, c'mon, why are you ignoring me like this?"

She turned back at him and stared at him coldly. "Well, it's not in my right mind to say, but I think it's because you seem to be getting a lot of kicks because of your new look. Catching a lot of attention, are you?"

He looked confused. "What, you mean because of those girls? C'mon, you know I don't like them in that way, and you know I think this thing around my waist looks like a skirty-bathroom rug." He sighed when he saw that April still wasn't convinced. "Look, I don't why you're acting like this, but you should know I'm really not trying to hurt your feelings. I ain't good with talking to women, but I still wanna try and do the best I can to make you happy. I really care about you, y'know."

April realized he and Penny were right. She really was jealous about those other women, and she felt guilty that she was happy that Casey was with her again. She felt so badly, but then she began to wonder why she was so jealous in the first place. She suddenly blushed when Casey put his hand on her shoulder.

"So, uh…" he stuttered, "I was gonna ask you if…uhh…would ya like to dance?"

She could sense the forgiveness in his eyes, and without a second thought, she took his hand and they ran into the circle. Eventually, the others joined in as well, with Mikey as Penny and Ukili's dance partner, and even Cornelius had eventually joined in, though his dancing was far from the best. The only ones not present were Leonardo and Taliama.

Near the beginning of the dance, Taliama had taken part in the priestesses' ritual and afterwards was dancing around the fire with Leonardo like a free spirit. He felt a great amazement from watching her dance with him, but he wasn't sure why. They were not keen on staying for too long though, and now, they were watching the celebration, up high from the balcony in the princess's room.

"It's certainly a beautiful night, isn't it?" Leo said, his voice surprisingly a bit shaky.

Taliama nodded. "I've never been able to see the stars with my own eyes, but I kind of have my own way of sensing the beauty of the night. Call it a sixth sense of aura in all living things and spirits."

"Is that how you were able to hear mine and my brothers' thoughts?"

She nodded. "All I have to do is focus my mind on the aura on a certain living thing and I can hear their inner voices." She knew he wasn't getting it. "You see, the High Priestess of out tribe is also my grandmother. Her daughter fell in love with father, and that's how I came to be a part of both of the greater powers of my tribe. Thanks to my heritage, I have to power to sense auras and it helps me connect to the powers of the Spirit Gods. However, it came at a great price."

Leo of course knew she meant her eyesight. "Whatever happened to your mother?"

She sighed. "She passed away when I was young," She could sense his regret of asking the question. "She died of a terrible sickness, and some of the elders believe it was caused by the demon goddess. They always though she would be the sacrificial host the demon needed to take over the entire world. Ironically, death was the best way for her to escape a fate like that."

"I'm sorry," Leo whispered. "I had no idea." Then he wondered something else. "So if the Spirit Gods need the bodies of purest heart, then what kind of host does the demon goddess need?"

"They say as long as it's a woman, she can take any human host she wants."

"Why's that?"

"It's not just because she's a demon godd_ess_," she explained. "The goddess believes that women are slaves to their own emotions, which in its own way is true, I guess. She thinks emotions are what make humans weak and therefore should not be a part of this world, and since women are more in touch with their hearts than men, that makes them easy targets to possess."

Leo shook his head in disgust. "Does she really think emotion is a sign of ignorance? It's her pride that makes her the ignorant one!" He slammed his fist on the railing in anger.

"Hey, calm down!" She walked over to him and placed her hands over his, making them both blush in surprise. "Look, it's not that big of a deal okay? The only thing I don't like about it is how much my father is so over-protective of me. After my mom died, he thought I would be the next target because of my lineage and my blindness. It almost makes me wish I never had anything to do with this island." She could sense that Leo looked surprised. "I know it's best for the island and the tribe that I stay here, but I really don't want to be stuck here for so long. I want to go out and see the world. Well, not really _see_, but I really just want to find out what's out there. There are so many things out there that I may never get to experience, so many different voices for me to hear. But my father would never allow it. That's why he doesn't know I train with our elite warriors."

Leo smiled in admiration and held Taliama's hands. "Listen, princess, I—

"Tali," she said, blushing, "Just call me Tali. I don't really like being talked to so formal-like."

Leo blinked in surprise. "Well, you can just call me Leo then," He began to chuckle in that very nervous way. "Tali, I…I don't what will happen to either of us with this whole prophecy thing, but if we ever find a way to get off of this island, I promise that I'll find a way to bring you with us. I'm sure your father will understand."

She was silent for a while. Then, she could feel the turtle's face grow hot as she brushed her hand over his face, around his strong arms, and then over his shell. Leonardo guessed this was her way of visualizing what he looked like.

"So, the Chosen Ones of the Spirit Gods are really giant turtles?" she asked. She couldn't help but laugh. "You know, for a turtle, you're actually quite gorgeous."

Leonardo's face grew redder and hotter once she said this. Still, he took her hands in his and stared in her eyes for a long time. They were eyes that couldn't see, but could see what others couldn't, and eyes so very pale but still so very beautiful. He wondered if she was thinking the same thing, but it really didn't matter to either to them. Soon, both of their eyes had closed as their faces grew closer and closer, their lips soon about to meet. Their hearts were beating faster in this beautiful moment under the stars, as the young turtle and princess seemed to glow together under the moonlight. Their lips were only inches away from intertwining, and their hearts were growing closer to each other. Closer, and closer, and closer…

"Yo, Leo, wazzup!"

Michelangelo's loud cry had startled Leonardo so much; he almost fell over the balcony while having a heart attack. The three brothers looked at him in confusion, while Taliama just stood there awkwardly.

"Uhh…hey, guys, what are you doing here?" Leo asked, his voice even louder and shakier than ever.

"We were just checking up on you." Don answered, "The guards said you had permission to see the princess in her room, so we decided to come up as well."

"Are you sure you're feeling okay, Leo?" Raph asked, quite curious about why his brother looked so freaked out.

"Oh, I'm just fine! Never better! Nothing going on over here!" He was, of course, very unconvincing.

Mikey was just as confused as his other two brothers, but didn't show it over his big yawn. "Well, you guys can act as crazy as you want, but I'm gonna go hit the hay."

His brothers decided after the large celebration, it was about time to go to bed. Leonardo followed his brothers out of Taliama's room and to the special tree house where they would be staying, but not without a thoughtful goodbye to the princess. The tree house was quite well furnished, but as soon as Mikey saw the hammocks, he used his air power to jump from the doorway right inside the hammock he wanted, while his brothers. Leonardo was still in confusion about what had happened between him and the princess, as he still couldn't believe how odd he had been acting around her. He knew he may be able to find out and keep that promise to Taliama about seeing the outside world, but all he wanted to do now was sleep.

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Okay, not the best ending I've done, but I'm tired. Hope you enjoyed it! 


	7. Battles in the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. All of the fans should know well enough not to sue and unless it's a certified rule on I'm only going to put the disclaimers in the first chapters. (sigh) Stupid disclaimers…

Well, sorry for not updating in a while. Right now I'm still trying to think of some things, vacation, and my computer was once on the fritz so I couldn't use the Internet on our family computer! (growls) Well it's fixed now, and here we go to Chapter 7, with more action and a lot more Casey/April fluff (heart). Enjoy!

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_Blackness…Blackness…Blackness as far as the eye can see, blackness with a feeling to suck you in at any moment and capture your earth-shattering scream, without any sort of structure_ _of a floor or roof to help take in the surroundings. He just stood there in the darkness, barely able to see himself, which would be considered very lucky if he were an owl, but he was just a single man…or rather, a small, scared little boy._

"_Hello? Can anybody here me?"_

_The young boy gasped as soon as he heard the sound of his voice, which to him seemed to be a lot higher pitched than usual. He gasped at what he could see of his small, child-like hands and could feel his heartbeat grow faster as he touched his small and soft boyhood face. To be so young once again for no apparent reason chilled his whole entire body. _

"_Wha…What's going on? What's happening to me?"_

_Then, he began to hear the sound of laughter. A laughter that had nothing to do with happiness, youth or fun, but a deep, diabolical laughter of insane pleasure only to be laughed by a blood-crazed maniac. The laughs were increasing in numbers, and were growing so loud that he had to cover his ears and shut his eyes tightly. When he opened them at last, he gasped at the sight of hot, wild lights dancing before him, howling in an ironic cold despair. _

_His home was on fire. This was the haunting image of his past, of what cruel things those fiends were capable of doing, all because his father refused to pay them protection money, and thanks to them, his father lost his life. He just stood there in a still shock as the images of Hun and the Purple Dragons cast looks of frozen daggers into his soul and the dark wisps of their breath from their laughter sucked the oxygen from his own. Then the darkness came back again, and the images of Hun, the Purple Dragons, and the burning building suddenly merged into one, and once the wicked merging was done, he soon saw himself staring into the eyes of a real violet coloured dragon, so huge that his neck hurt from lifting his neck so high. He didn't have to do that for long though, because as soon as he started to run faster than his legs could carry him, it chased after him at a speed faster than anything he'd seen before. The boy was running so fast he lost his footing quickly and landed hard on the ground, staring back into the eyes of the dragon as soon as he got his head back up. As he stared into the bloody red pools of the dragon's eyes, he could feel a cold dark breath devouring him as the dragon opened its mouth wide and rushed toward him. The boy screamed so loudly, but in the mouth of that dragon, the empty silence stabbed back at his own heart, and soon, there was nothing._

Casey screamed to the very top of his lungs as soon as he was able to awake from the horrifying nightmare he had witnessed in his mind. His whole body was covered in a chilled sweat, and his heart had barely managed to soften its beat as soon as he felt his strong, adult face again. But the peace didn't last long, since his scream had awoken the entire cabin.

"Whoa, Casey, are you alright, man?" Raph had asked him as soon as Casey's loud gasps quieted down.

Once Casey was calm enough to move, he saw his four terrapin friends, Master Splinter, Professor August, and Professor Cornelius staring at him in a mix of curiosity and worry.

"Yeah…" Casey breathed, "Yeah, I think I'm okay. Just a…a bad dream, that's all." He was able to breathe a little better now once Leonardo used his powers over water to create a cool mist to calm Casey's body.

"That should be able to help for a while," Leo told him.

"Remind me to give you a call when I need an alarm clock," Mikey joked.

"It takes getting used to, but I'm afraid I'll have to agree with the terrapin over there," Cornelius said, "You could've woken up the whole bloody village by now."

Casey chuckled with embarrassment. Then, as soon as his breathing was back to normal, he jumped out of his hammock and headed for the door. There was no way he could go back to sleep after a nightmare like that.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" Raph asked in concern.

"I'm just gonna get some air, that's all," Casey told him, hoping Mikey wouldn't say anything when he said the word "air". "I won't be too long." He hoped those words were assuring enough, and with that, he headed out towards the beach near the village.

Casey was furiously splashing his face with water on the shore as he finally reached the beach, still trying to get the terrible dream out of his mind. The problem was that it was so terrifying that he could remember it so clearly. He just hoped he didn't make the others worry too much. He stared at the water in deep though for a minute, trying to clear his head, when he suddenly started to hear noises from the jungle. He turned his head to see what danger awaited him on the other side of those leaves, and sighed in relief as soon as the figure was revealed.

"April!" Casey called out to the figure.

"Casey?" April called back in surprise. She ran over to Casey as soon as she saw him clearly, and felt her face turn red again as she saw him in just a pair of shorts and slim boots, with his whole entire chest exposed.

Casey couldn't help but blush along with April once he saw her. "What the heck are you doing out here?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing," April responded, "Penny and I just heard a noise pass by our cabin and I though I'd check it out. Penny was too tired to come along with me."

"She was, was she?" He couldn't help but chuckle. "That's quite a surprise."

April chuckled alongside him, but afterwards, there was a thick, awkward silence between them, and they couldn't explain why. "So, why is it that you're out here so late anyway?" she asked.

Casey sighed. "I couldn't sleep. I just had a crazy dream, that's all. Nothing to be worked up over." He could tell though it wasn't working for her. He knew she could sense something bad in his eyes, and worry was all she was feeling right now as she looked at him. He knew she wanted to help.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

Casey thought about it for a while, wondering if it would be a good idea to talk about something so personal. Then finally, he nodded and sat right next to April on the shore, explaining the dream with such vivid detail that it made her skin crawl. It took them a while before they were ready to talk again.

"So you were almost eaten alive by a real purple dragon?" April asked him.

Casey nodded. "Yeah, I just couldn't believe it. It went so far into my past that…I just can't explain it, y'know? It's like something merged all of my fear and sadness from that day into one big Purple Dragon and tried to attack me. I just didn't know what to do."

April was completely speechless. She was so saddened by his words that she couldn't think of anything to say without thinking of a reason of why it would hurt him. So, she tried to talk to him the best she could. "I'm…I'm really sorry about your dad," she said, "It really must have hurt, all of the anger and pain you held, suddenly trying to hurt you again in the form of some terrifying monster. You really deserve a lot better than that."

Casey looked at her curiously. "Why did you say that?"

April gasped. "Oh, uh…no reason, really! Just forget I said anything, okay?" She pretended to laugh, but she knew it wasn't working. She had just felt so guilty since the incident with those village girls. So, hugging her legs in shame, she decided to confess her feelings to Casey. "Actually…do you still remember what happened earlier with those other girls?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, I have to be really honest with you here. I guess…I was just really jealous of them."

"What for?" Casey asked.

"Well…I guess it's because they were trying to get so close to you, and I just wanted that closeness all to myself. I didn't care how they felt or how you felt, and I…I'm just so selfish!" She was just about to start crying when Casey wrapped a gentle arm around her.

"Hey, it's okay," he said in a cheerful tone to reassure her. "You don't have to turn on the waterworks about it! Look, forget about those girls, all right? They were just being a bunch of flirts; they probably do that with a whole bunch of other guys. And don't get worked up about what I think, okay? You know I'd never hurt like that because…you know…you mean a lot to me."

April felt a lot better again thanks to his kind words. "Thanks, Casey."

"Hey, no problem, April. I mean, what kind of girl out there _doesn't_ wanna get a piece of Casey Jones?"

Casey then felt a sudden punch on his arm, which April gave him for being so cocky. He lightly punched her back to get her to knock it off, but now she wanted competition, so she punched him harder on the arm, and they kept punching harder and harder. Then, Casey suddenly acted on impulse to get her to stop and splashed her with two hands full of water. He stopped right away as soon as he saw her dripping wet.

"April, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to go too far like that, I just..."

But once he saw April's face, he stopped. Although she was extremely shocked, she didn't burst out in a shrill scream, but rather, she began to smile really slyly.

"You are _so_ dead, Casey Jones!" And in seconds, April continuously splashed him with handfuls of water until he finally splashed right back at her.

The water fight between Casey and April lasted for quite a while, both of their lunges hurting from the continuous laughter. They were having such a fun time that Casey had eventually forgotten about his dream. Then, something unexpected happened. While they were still up on their feet splashing water at each other, Casey suddenly tripped on a shell, took April into his arms as he was falling, and landed right on top of her. Once the dust in the sand cleared and they stopped coughing from the impact, they suddenly became short of breath as they gazed at each other so closely together.

"April, I…Are you okay?" Casey asked quietly in a shaky breath.

All April could do was nod. She was caught in a quiet trance as she stared into Casey's sapphire blue eyes, eyes only someone as gentle as he was could have, glowing just like the moonlight on the water. As she brushed her hand over his face, he began to mimic her exactly, staring into the emerald eyes and brushing the soft cheek of a goddess. When this feeling became too much for them, they moved their faces closer together and locked lips with such passionate feeling. As the kiss became more and more passionate, April hugged Casey around his waist and Casey began to brush his fingers through her hair. Soon they began to roll around on the white sand with wild enthusiasm. When at last they were tired and short of breath, they awoke from their romantic trance and unlocked lips with a gasp of shock.

Casey's voice was quivering. "Did…Did we just—"

"Yes." April answered quickly. She moved her hand on Casey's cheek again, and from both that and the sudden kiss, she could feel his face grow very hot. As soon as he got off of her and once they sat up again, they looked away from each other in shyness. "I'm…I'm sure it was just a mistake. I mean neither us knew what we were thinking, right?" Finally, when she was brave enough, she took his hand and looked at him with gentle eyes. "Although I've gotta say…you have tremendously sweet lips."

Casey was red all over, but he was smiling. He then looked at the waves colliding with the shore, hoping the repetitive movement would calm him and let him say the right words. "April, listen. I know we really didn't get along well when we first met, and I know that our friendship has gotten a lot stronger as time passed, but…well…those feelings…for me anyway…keep getting stronger every time I see ya, and…well, there's something I gotta tell ya." He took her hands into his and gazed right into those same beautiful emerald eyes. "April, you mean more to me then you can ever know, and you've always gotta special place in here,"—Here he pointed to his heart—"And…the truth is…" He gulped as he prepared to say his special words to her while she waited patiently for him. "April…I…I…I lo—"

Suddenly, before he could finish, a loud explosion blasted right from the village with the impact reaching all the way to the beaches. Casey took April in his arms and ducked for cover, just in case the blast reached them. When everything turned into an eerie silence, Penny and Ukili suddenly came rushing out of the trees over to the two.

"Casey! Miss April!" Penny cried, "You've gotta help! This evil cloud started puffing out of the volcano, and these evil monsters started to appear from it, and the guys were trying to stop it, but they broke through and it went 'BOOM!' and now they'll all attacking the village!"

Casey and April gasped. Fearing for their friends, they got up from the beach, heading back through the jungle as fast as they could. Even the deadly predators of the night kept silent from fear.

As they ran, a thought suddenly came to April. "Hey, wait, I thought you said you were too tired to follow me," she said to Penny.

"I lied," Penny said with a grin on her face.

"Then what was the point of telling April you were too sleepy to come?" Casey asked.

"Oh, I thought it would be best to see what you two would be up to while giving you some _alone_ time." She couldn't help but wink at them.

Both Casey and April blushed furiously, but kept on running with their hands linked for fear of not being able to reach their friends in time. Eventually, they forgot about their moment at the beach for the time being and were hoping to be able to come to the rescue.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the centre of the village, the turtles were busily fighting the shadow creatures they had fought on the plane that crashed them into the island. Yoona had explained that in order to lead them there, she had to take possession of those four and had given them specific scents so that the turtles knew which ones to attack while their powers were still sleeping inside them. Now that they were awaken, the shadows were under the control of the demon goddess again, and as long as they used their powers, there would be no need for specifics. Still it was hard since they sometimes ignored them and decided to go after the village women and girls, realizing that they must be hunting down human hosts.

Leonardo and Raphael had made it easier for them to fight by cloaking their weapons in their own elements, Leo's katana shielded with a bubble of water that wouldn't rust the metal, and Raph's sais drenched in flames that wouldn't melt them. One thrust of their weapons was all they needed to take the enemies down, but Leonardo realised that with Michelangelo's help by creating hard blasts of wind with his nunchaku, he could also freeze his enemies in ice. Since Donatello's staff was made of wood, it made it a lot easier for him to control his earth element, either by tangling his enemies in vines and then striking, or lifting large chunks of earth from the ground and hitting them like a baseball bat. He accompanied Raphael with this strike, his brother punching out large balls of fire at the enemies, though it was a little embarrassing since he was starting to become a huge pyromaniac. The shadows kept coming from the volcano in great numbers, but as long as they didn't waste too much energy with their powers and all of the villagers were safely away from them, the turtles would be able to manage until sunrise.

Suddenly, they heard a large scream coming the palace of the king, the four brothers rushing over there quickly to investigate. The king was sitting on the ground with Yoona at his side, both covered in blood from the shadows. The head guards were busy fighting to protect to king and the entrance to the palace, but to no avail. The king must have done something very crazy to be covered in so many wounds.

"Please, Your Majesty, you have to wait until your wounds are healed," Yoona cried, urging her king to sit still as she bandaged his wounds. "These creatures are doing a lot more damage in the village then they are within your palace. You must join your people in safety."

"You know I cannot do that," King Zohra argued, "You know this isn't about my palace! Those who are precious to me are trapped in there and I must rescue them!"

"What's going on?" Leo asked the king.

"Chosen Ones, you must help me!" the king pleaded. "My daughter, she was caught off guard, and those fiends are holding her captive. I fear she may be lost forever!"

"Princess Taliama is still in there?" Leo gasped.

"Yes, please, you have to help—"

But no sooner did the king confirm his question then Leonardo drew his katana and rushed into the entrance doors of the palace. His brothers gaped at how quickly he went off to help the princess without a plan to go along with and had no choice but to follow him inside.

"Tali? Tali!"

Leonardo kept calling the princess's name as he rushed through every area of the palace he could find, slaying off any shadow that came across his path and rescuing anyone left in hiding. He tried to communicate with her telepathically, but a strong aura of darkness seemed to block any mind waves that came from her. He decided that the stronger the darkness, the closer he would be to her. He headed farther down into the palace, where Yoona had shown them the warriors' training arena, and could feel the darkness growing even stronger. It made the air dense and very musty, but he didn't care. As soon as he reached the doorway, he hurled himself right in.

The entire arena was filled with a wide space of blood red, purple, and black fog, cloaking everything to the human eye. Leonardo wandered through this black space for a time, sensing no sign of life anywhere. He breathed heavily in deep concentration, trying to make sure his guard wasn't down. He'd have to expect anything out of this darkness.

"Leo, behind you!"

Although glad to hear her voice, Leonardo turned around at Taliama's warning and bent backwards into a limbo position to avoid a sudden horizontal slash. He back-flipped to dodge another attack to retain his stance and saw the creature had barely any form at all. No wonder he couldn't see it. Behind him, Taliama charged at the demon and began slashing it with a pair of elbow blades, an obviously better weapon for her short-distance fighting. She was surprisingly swift, an equal opponent to him and his brothers. When she backed away, he joined up with her.

"How were you able to see that thing?" Leo asked.

"I can't see physical forms like you do, but these shadow demons are pure aura, so I can see what no one else can." Taliama smiled at him. "Being blind really has a lot of advantages!"

Leo nodded. As the creature rose up from Taliama's beating, the turtle and princess prepared themselves, but before it made another attack, a wooden staff was beaten hard on its head, revealing the three other brothers as it collapsed.

"Do you think I should've shouted out 'timber', or would that just set an example of irony?" Don asked despite the tension in the air.

"I'm really glad you came to help, guys," Leo told his brothers.

"Yeah, but you still got a lot of explaining to do," Raph growled, "Just what the shell did you think you were doing by taking off like that? What kind of nitwit runs into action without a well thought-out plan?"

The rest of them just kept quiet while Michelangelo stifled a laugh at his hypocritical brother. Before he could punch him though, the creature began to rise again, altering its shape while they stood ready. It grew larger and larger now, almost filling up the entire room, shape shifting into a form with spikes and silver armour, its eyes glowing blood red. Then, as it turned around, the turtles gasped as they saw the dark figure that stood before them now: their old nemesis, the Shredder.

Taliama didn't understand just who this figure was, but whoever it was, it had the four of them in a shock that froze them in place, like its appearance was mesmerizing. Then, the Shredder began to take a slash at Michelangelo, who didn't seem to move at all. Taliama gasped, at with all her might, she pushed Michelangelo out of the way from where the shadow would be striking, and carried on to do the same with the others. When she saw it would be too late to save Leo in time, she stepped in front of him and blocked the attack with her elbow blades. Tossed aside by the Shredder, she screamed as she slammed into a wall, waking Leonardo up from his trance.

"Tali!"

Just dodging another attack he rushed to her side to aid her, worried she might be hurt. He feared the same for his brothers. As she slowly opened her eyes while lying in his arms, she shook off the pain and pulled him away from another attack.

"Are you okay?" Leo asked.

"I'm okay," she replied, "But you can't be side-tracked by the shadow figure we're fighting right now. It's only an illusion, a figment from your past trying to force you into submission. Just keep telling yourself it's fake and you'll be fine." She took her stance again with her elbow blades. "I can take this thing on. Go help your brothers!"

With a nod, Leonardo rushed to help the others while Taliama fought hard to keep it at bay. Startling all three awake, he told them about the illusion and they were quickly on their toes again. From what they could see though, the princess wasn't making any progress.

"It's no good," she said between heavy breaths, "Looks like we're going to have to take drastic measures."

"What should we do, oh fair princess?" Raph asked sarcastically.

"We've got to channel all of our elemental powers together and take it down with one blow. I'm the High Priestess's granddaughter, so I know what I'm doing. Just make a large circle surrounding it and get into a standing meditative position, then focus all of your elemental power until it reaches its peak. When I give the signal, direct it at the beast and give it everything you've got!"

Following her lead, the turtles dodged the Shredder shadow's attack as quickly as they could and the five made a perfect circle around it. Taliama then made some sort of signature in the air with her fingers and pointed them at the beast, causing it to stop moving. They guessed it was some sort of paralysis spell. When they were ready, they bowed their heads, closed their eyes, and formed their own individual hand signs as they began to focus their elemental power until it reached its limit. From their stances, they reflected their own element: Leonardo was calm and focused as he stood in meditation, but at the same time he looked ready to swiftly thrash at his opponent with the power of water; Donatello was very calm and still, grounded as if already becoming one with the power of earth; Michelangelo looked really relaxed, growing in anticipation to fly with the power of air; Raphael was restless and growing ever stronger, the power of fire ready to pounce and burn; Taliama, meanwhile, looked almost like a ghost, as she was the one who controlled the power of the spirits.

Glowing in an intense light of elemental colour, Leonardo a vivid blue, Donatello a grassy earth, Michelangelo a bright yellow, Raphael a deep red, and Taliama a shining white, their powers had reached their peak, just as the paralysis spell wore off and the shadow was free once again.

"Great spirits of my people," Taliama cried, "Grant me power to defeat this beast and aid the Great Spirit Gods of the Elements! Give us all of your strength so that the Chosen Ones may fulfill the prophecy! NOW!"

"WATER!" Leo cried.

"EARTH!" Don cried.

"AIR!" Mikey cried.

"FIRE!" Raph cried.

With five cries shaking the room at once, the beast was attacked with five great pillars of red, blue, yellow, green, and white light from the palms of the turtles' and the princess's hands. The Shredder began shrieking in agony and each moment it began to disappear, no longer able to stand in the light. As the last of the shadows finally vanished, so did the five pillars of light, and the five of them became totally exhausted. Taliama began to fall towards the ground, but Leonardo managed to catch her in time, supported by his brothers once his feet began to shake. Up ahead, they could see Master Splinter heading towards them, hoping to aid his sons at the first chance he got. They noticed more people entering the arena too, but their vision was growing a lot blurrier. Before they could embrace their sensei, the five of them collapsed.

* * *

Okay, this has gone on long enough. Like I said, sorry for the long wait, still trying to come with some ideas, but Chapter 8 will be up soon. See ya then!


	8. Exploration of the Caverns

Leonardo's vision was hazy and weak when he opened his eyes since that fateful battle, the images around him swirling and blurry as he tried to keep his eyelids open. His head felt heavy and dull, as if he had been sleeping a thousand feet under water. It was a mystery to him how long he had been out cold after that fight with the shadow Shredder, and immediately his thoughts turned to his brothers and Taliama. He forced his mind to clear and his vision to make the figures before him solid shapes again, worried about his family and the princess. As he raised himself up, he felt someone place sturdy hands on his body and keep him still.

"Don't force yourself up too quickly, Chosen One," a voice beside him said. He turned to see the High Priestess Yoona holding him up straight. "I peered into your dreams while you rested; there is nothing to fear. Your brothers and my granddaughter are safe."

"High Priestess Yoona," Leo grunted, trying to find his voice again. He nodded to her in gratitude. "Thank you. I should be fine for now."

Slowly lifting himself up with Yoona's help, he looked up to examine his surroundings. He was in a circular room, covered in strange markings and animal skins, with strange tools and equipment hanging from pegs in the walls. The room was covered in the scent of incense, mixed with the smell of herbs and other medicines lying on small tables. It carried out into the air through the open-domed sky roof above him.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"This is my private medicine room, reserved only to the members of the royal family," Yoona explained, "I try to keep it as closed off as possible so that I may keep its healing aura strong. Of course, I do make some exceptions."

"Where are my brothers? Do you know where I can find them?"

"They're patiently waiting in the main hall. However, you should stay inside and regain your spiritual power for just a while longer. You seem to use up an excess amount of energy in battle than your brothers do."

Leonardo blushed in embarrassment. He was commonly teased as the overachiever of the group and it looked like the High Priestess was well aware of that as well.

The High Priestess left the room quietly so she could report to the king, leaving Leonardo alone to meditate in peace. As he silenced his mind from all outside thought, he could feel the healing essence of the room take effect, listening to the sound of crashing waves in the distance and feeling the currents flow through his veins, so strong he felt he could let it flow out of his fingertips. His senses heightened, he felt a presence enter the room silently, coughing at the smell of the incense. He opened his eyes and saw Taliama in front of him.

"Tali!" He cried, rising from his feet. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, holding back the urge to cough. "I always hate going in here. The smell is too thick and the aura blocks out the rest of my sixth sense. I can't focus in here." She sneezed loudly.

Leo gently took her hand. "Here, I can help you get out; we can talk outside."

He was shocked when Taliama quickly removed her hand from his. "I can find my own way out, thanks." He didn't like how harsh her tone sounded and her eyes carried a sense of hurt in her mind.

"I'm...sorry, I just wanted to help."

"Well, don't. I'm perfectly capable of finding the way out, you know."

"I just thought the aroma was going to throw you off, that's all. And if it does that, your eyes certainly won't help you find the exit."

"Who do you think you are, my father?" Tali cried out, glaring at him, though her eye contact wasn't perfectly accurate. "I don't need someone to hold my hand and guide me through the room just because I can't see!"

She carefully moved through the room, using her hand to find the doorway, but ended up bumping into Leonardo, who was blocking her from her exit.

"I don't think you're weak! I was just worried that you could have been badly hurt!" As he argued with her, he walked forward in front of her, causing her to back up. "Do you have any idea how worried sick I was when we fought that giant shadow?"

Tali turned away from him. "I don't need anyone to protect me!"

"I know you're a perfectly capable fighter, but if the enemy exploits your limitations, you could end up in big trouble if you have no one there to help you! There's no dishonour in asking for help!"

"Then stop treating me like a little child and acting like you're better than me just because you're a Chosen One!"

In her rage, Taliama lost her footing and tripped on an item standing in the middle of the floor, taking Leonardo with her as she fell back, causing him to fall on top of her. Still feeling bitter, she struggled to move from Leonardo's grasp, but he held her back in the hopes of calming her down. He was about to open his moth to speak and try reasoning with her when they heard someone enter the room.

"Hi, Leo!" the intruder called. It was Penny. "I just came up here to check on you for your brothers and Master Splinter. I hope Grandma Yoona doesn't mind. Is there anything you...?"

Penny tilted her head curiously at the position Leonardo and Taliama were currently in. Overwhelmed by her stare, they turned back to each other and suddenly realized how awkward this position suddenly became for them. They were frozen for a minute, their eyes wide and blushing madly. Without a word, Penny walked herself out and continued on her merry way, with the flustered turtle and princess pushing themselves away from each other and following her, trying to explain to the little girl that what she had seen was nothing. Of course, it was very hard to convince her since their faces were beet red and their body language sporadic. Penny knew it was no use trying to fool her...although from what she couldn't comprehend yet.

Once things had finally settled down, Leonardo and Taliama were summoned to the king's throne room, avoiding eye contact with each other as they sat down beside the others. Donatello, Michelangelo, and Raphael were tempted to pester Leonardo about this sudden rift between him and the princess, but now didn't seem like the best time to ruffle his feathers, especially since they were in the presence of the princess's father.

"Chosen Ones," King Zohra, "I thank you dearly for protecting my people from the wrath of the demon goddess's shadow servants and saving my daughter from terrible danger. However, I must ask for your favour once again. Although you have succeeded in defending my village from a brutal slaughter, I'm afraid that some of my people were unable to escape capture. All who have been reported missing are women of various ages, mothers and farmers, healers and girls who have only just come of age days ago. The goddess is clearly making great haste to find the right host body before her prophesised return is upon us."

"How do we know that?" Raph asked.

"According to the prophecy, she will return on the night when the full moon turns blood red as it rises into the sky. In order for her to carry out her plans, she must find a host body before the full moon reaches its zenith above our island. Chosen Ones, please rescue the women of my tribe and bring them back safely before the goddess returns to this world!"

Mikey jumped up with enthusiasm. "We're on it, Your Majesty!"

"Just tell us where we need to locate them," Don added.

"My warriors last spotted the shadows heading towards the volcano that stands at the centre of the island. Under and around it should be a series of caves and tunnels that the goddess and her servants are using as a lair, as it was believed in the legends that the volcano is where the goddess was sealed back into the world of demons. Be sure to be on the watch for the shadows at her command and that no harm comes to my kidnapped villagers."

"Understood, Your Majesty," Leonardo said, bowing deeply to the king.

The four turtles got up and were headed for the door, but just before they were about to leave, someone in the group had caught the king's eye.

"And just where do you think you're going, my daughter?" he shouted.

Taliama stood frozen in her tracks, her face distorted by trying to hold back the biggest that she had ever made in her entire life. She turned to her father, desperately trying to shape her grimace into a polite smile. "Oh, Father, forgive my brashness, but...I was just thinking that our brave saviours could use some assistance. As an heiress to the spiritual powers of our High Priestess, I should be able to guide them to their destination so they can safely rescue our women, and as a member of the royal family, I feel that I have a responsibility to protect my people and help the Chosen Ones to-"

"Oh, no, no daughter of mine is going anywhere near that place! Your spiritual energy may be great, but your lineage and your...disadvantages would allow you to be defeated easily."

"I agree," Leo suddenly spoke up. "If she comes with us, she runs the risk of becoming the goddess's most desired host body, and I won't allow that to happen."

Taliama was almost about to lose it, especially after what Leo had said. "But...Father-"

"I have spoken! You are to stay here in the palace until the women have been rescued!"

Shaking in contained rage, she slowly bowed her head. "Understood, Father. You do know what's best for me, after all." In her head, she let off a series of curse words that the turtles were unfortunate enough to hear and understand. Leonardo went red while his brothers looked at him quizzically.

Before heading off on their quest, the turtles gathered information from the villagers of how to reach the volcano, tracing down the safest path to take through the rainforest on their makeshift map. The details were sketchy, as very few villagers had ever gone there for fear its cursed nature, but they managed to make good use of the directions given to them. Thinking that the turtles could use some help, Splinter, April, Casey, August, Cornelius, Penny, and Ukili decided to come with them, saying that they never knew when they could need some extra help. They traversed the rainforest with ease thanks to Donatello's elemental powers, though there was a sense of eerie emptiness that followed them as they walked closer and closer to their destination. Cutting through the last layer of the rainforest brush, the group finally reached the base of the volcano.

The volcano towered over them a hundred feet high, smoke rising up from the molten depths that formed an ominous ring above it. There was a menacing aura to its formation, reeking power and destruction. Ahead of them, they could see the cave entrance that lead to the series of tunnels and caverns the king had mentioned. As they stepped inside, they could feel a chill wind blow pass them, a warning that this was not a place for them to tread. Seeing nothing but black ahead of them, Raphael lit a large fireball in his hands, using it as a makeshift lantern.

"Well, ain't no time like the present," Raph said, itching to move forward. "Let's go in."

The cold wind howled around them as the group walked silently through the cave, looking around enquiringly at their surroundings with what light they had. Stalactites and stalagmites surrounded them from all over, threatening to pierce them from above and below with their sharp tips if they weren't careful. Improvising, Penny decided to take some candy given to her by the villagers and drop them on the floor in a straight line, making sure they didn't get lost on the way out. Cornelius would have reprimanded her for being so wasteful, even though he was a tad bit impressed by the idea, but the atmosphere was so thick no one could speak. Hoping to break the heavy atmosphere, they decided to talk in hushed whispers.

"So, Leo," Mikey asked, "What exactly happened with you and the princess anyway?"

Leo's eyes went wide with shock. "Uh...nothing, why?"

"What are you guys talking about?" April asked curiously.

"Well, Leo and the princess have always been acting real chummy around each other," Don teased, "but today they could barely stand to look at each other since we were summoned to the throne room."

Leo was turning red. "Don, shush!"

Raph was laughing at the memory of the princess's mental cuss-off. "Heck, if I didn't know any better, I'd say our fearless leader here just got dumped!"

"Guys, look, I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

"But we thought you'd want brotherly advice to patch things up with your girlfriend!" Mikey chided.

Leo was blushing wildly now. "She. Is. Not. My. Girlfriend!" he hissed, causing everyone around him to chuckle. All he could do was droop his head hopelessly.

"Well, she won't be with that attitude, bro," Raph teased. "Is this all because you wouldn't let her come with us?"

"This is a dangerous mission and I'm afraid she'll get hurt and wind up as a host body! Why is she being so stubborn about it?"

"You're missing the point, my son," Splinter advised, "I know that you care about her, but by holding her back, you have severed the trust between yourselves and she no longer feels that you believe in her fighting skills because of her blindness."

"Well, yeah, but I..." He didn't know what to say about it. This kind of thing was too confusing for him and he was still felling bitter about how she acted. He was never sure how he felt about Taliama.

"But Leo sure does really care about her!" Penny chimed in. "I mean he was right on top of her and everything!"

His brothers quickly turned their heads to face him, eyes wide and jaws slack.

Leo blushed and waved his arms around frantically. "IT...IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK!" he desperately cried out loud.

As they headed further into the caverns, they came upon an open room where the path split into four directions.

"Great, so which way do we go now?" Casey asked.

"Let me try something," Mikey said, stepping into the centre of the room. He focused his mind on the wind travelling through the tunnels, hoping to hear the voices of the women that would lead them to their prison. Unfortunately, all he could hear was a dull nothingness, no matter how hard he focused. "Ah, it's no use! I can't pick up any voices from any of the tunnels. All I can feel on the wind is this weird dull presence."

Don put his hand to the wall, concentrating on the rock formation that stretched out around him. "Mikey's right. There seems to be some kind of dark aura covering this entire set of caverns."

Cornelius shook his head in irritation. "Please tell me you're not going to suggest black magic."

"Could be," said Leo. "I mean, we're in the lair of a demon goddess here."

"Oh, how did I end up falling down this out-of-sense rabbit hole?" Cornelius moaned with woe.

"Look, the only thing we can do now at this point is split up. Cornelius, you can go with Raph and Casey; Don will go with April and August; I'll go with Master Splinter; and Mikey, you can go with Penny and Ukili."

Michelangelo, Penny, and Ukili cheered.

"But why are you sending me with the brutes?" Cornelius cried out in more anguish.

"Someone has to keep them in line,"

This seemed to cheer Cornelius right up. 'Well, when you put it that way. A scholarly mind like mine would be the best thing to keep two intellectually-challenged hooligans in order."

Raphael and Casey were less than enthusiastic.

So they split up into four teams, each team covering one of the four tunnels in their way. Leonardo and Splinter took the southwest tunnel; Donatello, April, and August taking the northwest tunnel; Michelangelo, Penny, and Ukili taking the northeast tunnel; and Raphael, Casey, and Cornelius taking the southeast tunnel. As they set on their different paths, a figure in the shadows was following their movements from behind, sneaking their way into the southwest tunnel.

Leonardo and Splinter were keeping extra caution of the traps that could be laid around them. On high alert, they managed to escape with their lives when they activated one that sent a rain of arrow towards them, Leonardo detecting them and slicing up the arrows with his sword. He checked back at where the arrows were fired and noticed that there weren't any buttons or switches they could have pressed to activate the traps. It was then he noticed how the traps worked. As they walked on, a guillotine suddenly sprang out of ceiling and nearly sliced them, without activating any obvious traps. Trying out a theory, he went backwards and tumbled under the guillotine before it sliced him, sensing that the traps were blended into the scenery and were activated by body heat. When he met back with Splinter, he formed a thick mist around them and let the cold misty air cover up their body heat, tricking the sensors and leaving the tunnel without any problems. The figure followed them safely through by tailing them at the end of the misty cloud.

The tunnel Donatello took was a lot more fragile. After taking a few steps in, he felt the ground suddenly feel a lot lighter than it should and used his staff to knock at the ground. The path in front of them had fallen apart in seconds, leading down into a deep abyss that had no way out. He could see the exit to the tunnel some distance away, but he would have to think fast. He decided to form his own rock formation to rebuild the path, but with no foundation under them, the path would fall apart in minutes. Seeing no other way across, he formed the path they needed and told April and August to book it. They ran for their lives down the weak rock path, feeling it fall apart behind them in seconds. They had all almost reached the exit when April tripped and felt the ground below her give, sending her into the black abyss. Luckily, both Donatello and her uncle had managed to catch her in time. Donatello sealed off the tunnel, making sure no one else had to go through that again.

Raphael's trip was a lot more irritating than he would have liked. He ran into the shadow enemies from before, ready to pounce on him and take his life. He was prepared through, unsheathing his sais and sent a stream of fire down his arms, the flames licking the blades as readied for battle. With his flame-covered sais and shuriken, he went into to battle with a passion as wild as his element. He took care of anymore shadows that came their way, helping out Casey whenever he was having trouble fighting. Cornelius was caught in the middle and nearly hit by both sides, so he hid in the corner until it was over. By that time his own fiery temper grew, unleashing a derogatory rant onto Raphael for his behaviour and nearly getting him killed. Raphael, no longer having the right temper to simply ignore him, was shouting back in his face, ready to slice and burn him with his sais. Being the only level-headed one left, Casey stepped in-between the two, urging them stop their quarrelling and move on or they would never be able to get out. After calming down, they agreed, coming to the consensus that the sooner the job was done, the quicker they could be apart from each other.

Michelangelo's tunnel was surprisingly easy. They had not encountered a single trap or enemy, and the way out was just a few feet from them.

"Well, that was easy," Mikey cheered, "This rescue mission is gonna be a cake walk!"

"I wouldn't be too sure," Penny replied. "Bad guys can be pretty sneaky. We have to keep a solid mind and be as sneaky as a snake." She started moving around the room, slowly but with rapid movements, imagining she was a secret agent sent to spy on the enemy. Michelangelo just watched her in silence.

During her pretend-spy game, however, Penny tripped on a cord just below her and cried in pain. Michelangelo came rushing to her aid.

"Aw, don't cry, Penny," Mikey said, hoping to make her feel better. "You just hurt your knee a little. It's not that bad."

Ukili suddenly felt the ground quiver around her and heard a rumbling noise. When she turned around, she gawked in fear as a large boulder dropped from the shadows above them and was speeding their way. Michelangelo and Penny took notice and grew white with fear at the boulder.

"Okay, now it's really, really bad." Mikey whispered.

They ran as fast as they could down the path, hoping to outrun the boulder catching up behind them.

Meanwhile, Leonardo's, Donatello's and Raphael's group had all exited their tunnels and wound up in another large room, that connected all together. It was the same as the room before expect for two small differences: a large tunnel going upwards and another large tunnel going downwards.

"Well, it looks like we all ended up in the same spot," Leonardo said in amazement.

"Yeah, but Mikey still ain't back yet." Raph noticed.

"Hopefully, he's having better luck than we did." Don added, panting from his group's exploration.

"What happened to you guys?" Casey asked Don's group.

"You don't want to know," August replied.

Suddenly, they looked up at the upper tunnel and saw Michelangelo sprinting down to the lower tunnel, carrying Penny and Ukili while all three screamed for their lives.

"Mikey!" Leo cried in surprise. "We were wondering where you-" His eyes followed his brother as he ran straight past him without hesitation.

"SORRY!" Mikey shouted. "CAN'T TALK! RUN! NOW!"

They all turned back to where he had come from and saw the boulder that had been following him racing straight towards them. Immediately, the entire group was heading downwards scream, racing to put as much distance between them and the boulder, hoping for a split route or sharp turn to take but had yet to appear. For now, all they could do was run.

"Donny, do something!" Raph shouted.

"What do you want me to do?" Don cried back, "I mean, how am I supposed to stop a giant boulder following us at 50 miles an hou-" He stopped short and slapped himself on the forehead. "Duh, I have earth, remember?"

Turning around to face the boulder rolling towards him, Donatello took his stance and, when the boulder was close enough, released a powerful punch at the punch at the rock, using his power to soften the blow and break the boulder into a million tiny pieces. The strength and effort had worn him out.

"That...was...AWESOME!" Mikey cried. "Donny, you rock! No pun intended."

Raph slapped Mikey on the head. "Come one, bonehead, time's a wastin'! We've got to find those captured women before tonight."

Everyone agreed and headed down the tunnels as fast as they could. Once Mikey was focused, he began to hear the screams and cries of a group of people on the wind, now knowing which way they had to go. Following his lead, they made their way to a level slab of rock that opened up to the wide area below.

They were inside the molten caverns now, the heat from the pool of lava below them so hot and blistering they felt they could no longer breathe. Steam rose from the pool, distorting their vision of the room around them. They had to crane their necks high to see the opening from above, and guessing from the position from the sun, they guessed it was close to sunset. Around them they heard the screams and cries of help from the women trapped in wooden cages on the edges of the interconnected rock platforms, surrounded by shadowed figures covered in dark robes. Gazing at the frightened faces in front of them, they knew they had to act fast.


	9. Escape from the Volcano

The captured women were shaking horribly as they sat in their cages, trying to avoid the sharp gaze of the shadow mages that watched over them, eyes white and empty under their robes and with no months to speak or shout. In spite of their lack of voice, they shook fear into the captives with their simple presence, using their subtle body language to strike fear within. With it, they conveyed to the captives that if they did not cooperate, they would either be thrown into the pool of lava under them or put under extreme torture for the others to watch. So far, none of the women had been executed to either fate, but they were afraid that as time flew by, that opportunity could soon come to pass. All they could so was stay silent and pray for the Chosen Ones to save them.

The turtles looked carefully around their surroundings, searching out for anything that could either help or hinder their rescue. They looked at each interconnected platform, thinking what the best way was to free the women and get them out safely without falling into the lava. They also needed to be aware of how they were going to fight those robed shadows, unaware of how they could defend themselves. It was also critical that they needed a plan to get the women out of the caverns safely without the demon shadows following them. After careful thinking, they went over their strategy with the others.

"Okay, listen up," Leo said, gathering everyone into a group. "We should be able to get the hostages out if we watch our footing along the path, but it's not going to be easy with those guards watching them. One false move and the hostages are as good as dead. And with no way out along the walls, we'll be sitting ducks. Here's what we'll do. Don, you go back down into the tunnels with the others and make an exit that's out of harm's way and that'll lead everyone safely back to the village. Mikey, Raph, and I will stay here and free the captives and keep those guards busy while the women escape. Once they're out, Don will come back and help us find another way out so that we don't lead the guards back to the village. As for everyone else, your job is to make sure the women make it back safely once they're outside. Everyone got that?"

Everyone nodded in confirmation.

"Good. Now, before we free the captives, we need a distraction."

Everyone suddenly looked in Michelangelo's direction.

Mikey's face produced a thick frown on it. "Oh, of course it has to be me," he groaned. "I mean absolutely nothing to you people. How the heck am I supposed to fend off these guys? They look like they could kill me five times before I hit the lava!"

Raph groaned at his brother. "Mikey, you have the power of gales and hurricanes at your fingertips; I think you can handle this!"

So reluctantly, Michelangelo pushed his way out of their fissure and onto the platform before. His body was covered in sweat that was forming not just from the hot lava below. Taking a deep gulp, he whistled over to the robed guards.

"Oh, boys!" he cried in a high-pitched voiced towards the demons. "Time to pa-lay-ay!"

"Oh, brother," he heard Raph mutter from behind.

Leaping into the air, he spun his nunchaku around and aimed at the empty air below him, creating a platform made of a powerful gust that he was able to stand on. He moved the platform far up away from the cages, luring the guards toward him. To his shock, they moved with incredible speed so silently it sent a chill down his spine. He turned around and caught them opening their hoods and revealing the most terrifying faces he had ever seen: wide white empty eyes that stared into his soul and nothing where their lips should have been. Then, he saw a thin line appear at the lip line, splitting into two and revealing a line of sharp, ragged teeth gleaming at him in a haunting way. Suddenly, their lower teeth dropped to the base of their necks and they their hands revealed long, blood red claws, ready to slice and gash at Michelangelo's body. He jumped out of the way in time, lucky to have missed the jaws that could have bitten off his head. That was the heavy nightmarish thing he had to worry about.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Leonardo and Raphael rushed over to each of the cages, hoping to make the time their brother had to bide short after seeing those repulsive forms. Using their blades, they cut away at the wooden cages and urged the women to move over to the fissure in the wall, no time to stop for thanks and praise. The last woman to be set free, however, had managed to find her time with Raphael.

"Thank you, Chosen One," she said. She had long black hair and pale skin, a curvy figure and large, black eyes. She gazed at Raphael in a rather peculiar way. "I could never be more thankful to be rescued by someone more deserving than you, especially someone so...strong and with such scorching passion."

Raph was blushing madly. "Well, uh...you know, um...it's...it's what I do." As she headed out with the other women, she winked at Raphael and blew him a kiss. He stood there dumbstruck until he slapped himself in the face. "What the shell am I doing? Gazing stupidly at some broad...I turning into Leo!"

"Hey!" Leo shouted, annoyed.

"Umm...guys," They turned upwards at Mikey's call for assistance. "I could really use some help here!

As the words fell from his mouth, the claws had struck hard at his front, causing to fall from his wind platform and into the molten depths below.

"Mikey!" Leo and Raph cried.

Leonardo quickly caught his brother using a pool of water he formed in the air, careful not get it so close to the water; otherwise it would heat up an hurt him. Michelangelo, back in the game, reformed his wind platform, expanding it so that his brothers could jump on and fight with him. They were quick to back each other up, each blocking the claws and stabbing at the jaws that threatened to consume their flesh. The only sound the demons made was a quiet screeching.

The fight was going well until Leonardo was caught off guard and thrown back onto the platform under their fissure, where one of the demons intruded the space between their faces and shrieked at him, a whisper of a shriek that still managed to make Leonardo shutter in pain. Seeing his chance, the demon was ready to end it when a figure stepped in front of him, slicing her elbow blades at the enemy until it backed off. Leonardo weakly looked up at the figure and gasped.

"Tali! How did you-"

"I followed you, plain and simple," she replied, 'I'm still mad about what you said, but now's not the time. Now I think _you _need _my _help!"

She stretched her hand out towards him and he took it. She was dressed in her battle outfit and a warrior mask, ready to fight and prove herself. Leading her to the wind platform, they jumped and stood back to back each other, slicing at as many demons as they could with Michelangelo and Raphael. However, it couldn't last forever; they were starting to get tired, while the demons showed no signs of letting up. They were about to strike once more when they were struck by barrage of boulders coming from a hole higher up in the wall. Donatello was waving to them up top, watching as the demons plummeted and smouldered in the lava pool.

"Thanks, Donny!" they all yelled.

"Don't mention it!" their brother called back. I just need you to bring what's left of the cages with you!"

They were unsure why Donatello wanted them, but they took whatever wood and rope they could from the cages, carrying them up the path Donatello had formed up to his location. Once they were out in the sunlight again, he sealed the exit and immediately started putting the wood together and tying it with the rope.

"Uh, Donny," Raph said, "Not to question your genius thinking, but what the shell are you doing?"

"I'm building a way to get us off this volcano as fast as I can. The demons could come back and get us any minute, and the larger distance we put between us and them, the safer the village will be." When he was finish, he displayed for them a sled fitted for five people. "I've already made a safe slope that will get us back into the village safe and under control, and after that, I really need to rest because using these powers takes up a lot of work and I am exhausted!"

"Don't worry, Don," Leo assured, "We'll all be resting after this."

"I just hope that exhaustion didn't affect your common sense, bro," Mikey said, "because I've got to tell ya, this looks like the most insane idea you've ever come up with."

"Get used to it, Mikey," Raph replied as he prepared to push the sled while the others got in. "This whole adventure has been one insane trip after another since we got here."

After being given the signal, Raphael pushed as hard as he could and jumped inside in time as the sled plummeted down on the slope of the hill, causing everyone to scream in fear. The wind was lashing at them at this high velocity and the drop threatened to ruin Donatello's plan of a soft slope with its lack of control.

"Hold on!" Don cried.

Taking hold of the sled, Donatello and Leonardo pulled as hard as they could to turn the sled away from the coming rocks and other debris along the path, switching between left and right turns in order to keep their control at this high velocity. They were just about to cheer for going back on the smooth path again when they saw ahead of them an uneven level of rock that looked like a ramp, heading right towards them at rising speed, too quick to make any sudden turns and escape.

"Oh, shell!" Raph cried.

"Hang on to something!" Don advised. "It's gonna be a bumpy ride!"

Taking his advice, they all grabbed onto their sides of the sled with all of their might, Leonardo and Taliama end up gripping each other hands as they all closed their eyes and prepared for liftoff. They glided into the air, soaring above the treetops of the rainforest. It would have been a brilliant experience had it not been for the slim chances of survival. Their flight finally ended for them when their sled dived and crash landed into a patch of trees sitting on the bank of the river, causing everyone to fall into the water.

Sore, dizzy, and nauseous, the five of them slowly lifted themselves out of the water, groaning as they tried to regain their senses after that crash landed.

"Oh, man," Mikey groaned, "that was one crazy roller coaster ride." After some time, however, he suddenly got all of his enthusiasm back and cried, "Let's go again! Let's go again!"

Everyone around him shouted, "NO!"

As they managed to get back on their feet, they heard a suddenly rustling in the bushes. Splinter, April, Casey, August, Cornelius, Penny, and Ukili had all come out greet them after seeing their crazy escape plan.

"Guys!" April cried.

"Good Lord, are you all alright?" August asked in concern, helping the turtles out of the river. "I swear, I thought you were all some giant shooting star for a moment, but of course shooting starts don't scream as frantically as you do."

"All of that insanity you caused at the village," Cornelius started, "I swear, you turtles are going to be the death of me."

"That must have been an exciting ride though!" Penny cheered and Ukili nodded. "It must have been a really exciting ride." She then looked downward and sighed. "I only wish I could have joined you and helped, but I couldn't do anything special."

"Hey, don't act like that," April said, getting on one knee and putting her arm around Penny. "You did a great job leading us out of the rainforest."

Penny beamed. "Really?"

"Of course!" Casey replied, sitting down beside April and Penny. "If it hadn't been for you, we would have gotten lost and end up being eaten by some scary monsters!"

Penny jumped up and down in joy and hugged Casey and April around the shoulders. Everyone smiled at the three, seeing something very affectionate about the way they looked together.

While everyone was settling and recalling the adventure, Raph turned towards his geeky brother. "Seriously, Donny, the next time you come with some crazy idea like that, make sure you remind me not to let you go through with it!"

Splinter put a hand on his shoulder. "I don't think now would be the best time to talk to your brother, Raphael."

They turned towards Donatello, who had been shaky and queasy ever since the crash. They turned away as he headed into the bushes and the sick sound of vomiting came from his direction. Raphael nodded in agreement at his sensei.

When they returned to the village, they were welcomed with praise by all of the villagers, the women whom they had saved all thanking them, giving them gifts, and some even kissing them, much to Michelangelo's delight. The only one not present, however, was the woman Raphael had seen, who was now standing at the outcrop of the village, sneering in delight as she watched the celebration go on, mocking the people for how oblivious they were to the things to come. Cackling with delight, she walked away from the village, her body vanishing into the air and her faint but powerful, oppressive presence in the wind.

Meanwhile, twilight had moved into the village, the villagers anxiously waiting for the blood moon to rise into the sky as the sun set under the horizon for possibly the final day. Leonardo was swiftly climbing the palace walls, reaching up for the balcony of the princess's room. He had to say some things before they went off to sleep. As he pulled himself over the balcony, Taliama walked out of her room and onto the balcony, wearing only a thin summer nightgown. Leonardo looked away, hoping to show his respect, but she didn't seem to notice.

"Hey!" she called to him.

"Hey," he called back meekly, "I guess your father is still pretty mad at you. It must suck having to get grounded by the king."

She shrugged. "It's not so bad. I'm glad that at least you and my grandmother stood up for me. As soon as this whole mess is over, I'm sure he'll come around."

Leo nodded in agreement. "Anyway, I'm just here to say that I'm...sorry for what I said earlier. You're a very skilled fighter and I was just afraid you'd get injured, but I should have trusted your abilities more. I also wanted to say...thanks, for saving my life."

Taliama shyly looked away. "I guess I should say I'm sorry too. I just get enough of that overprotection stuff from my father, and I guess it just made me sad that you were going to think the same way, especially after I had found someone who could understand me. I don't want my blindness to be a sign of weakness and reason for pity. I just want to prove that I'm strong and not some hopeless damsel in distress. I know you were only looking out for me as an equal, so I guess I overreacted."

"Just remember that's there's proving your strength and being reckless. You could have gotten into a lot worse trouble than us out there."

"I didn't leave just to prove myself. I mean, I was still angry, but I could sense that you guys would get into trouble, so I left to help out. Maybe I should tell my father that I've been training with our warriors." She shook her head. "Nah, it wouldn't make a difference."

"Just give him time; he's got a lot on his mind right now, what with the attacks and the prophecy."

Taliama giggled. "You know, I don't like the idea of being betrothed to anyone, but I had to make someone my husband, I would have to be you."

Leo's face went red, but then he shook his head sadly. "It wouldn't work out between us. I mean, for one thing, I'm not even human."

She lightly touched his arm. "Hey, I'm not exactly interested in a man's looks, in case you haven't noticed. And besides, it's not like I need you to help me bare an heir anytime soon."

Leonardo blushed madly at the idea. He had no idea whether he would be able to see Taliama after this whole ordeal was over. He would love to stay with her, but he could never leave his family, and it was the same for her, no matter how much she rebelled against her father. All he could do was hold her in his arms in this one tender moment they had with each other. When Taliama called to him, he lowered his head and let her whisper something in his ear. His eyes went wide and he stepped away.

"Princess—Tali," he stuttered, "I...I couldn't, I..."

"I am the princess of this village," she said, announcing her authority, "and even though you have been chosen to save our people, you still follow under my command! I have given you a direct order and you will follow it! Understood?"

He gulped and deeply bowed his head. "As you wish, my princess."

Leonardo slowly lifted Taliama's head to his and pressed his lips to hers, slowly becoming intoxicated with her as he deepened the kiss. He moved his fingers through her long black her and smelt the scent of wild island flowers on her skin and clothes, while she gently brushed her fingers against his shell and the toned muscles in his arms and shoulders. They melded into the shadows together, the single mind and body of a powerful warrior who guards their island paradise in the night. It didn't matter whether they were of different species; their souls were of the every same essence.

As they ended the kiss, Taliama clutched Leonardo in her arms, crying in joy that she was no longer alone, that there was someone she didn't need to prove herself to, who accepted her as an equal and trusted in her. Leonardo gently cradled her in his arms, happy to be next to someone he loved that was more than just an ally on the battlefield, that he would gladly give his life for had she been forced to give up all of her pride and ask for his help. By all of the teachings of Bushido, he loved this strong, confident, and powerful warrior of a woman. It was a special love that was a lot different from the love he held for his family, and they both revelled in it.

Suddenly, they felt a large shaking under their feet that forced them to break apart, an earthquake that rattled the entire village, causing the villagers to run outside and scream.

"What's going on?" Leo asked.

He was about to leave and assist the villagers when a lightning bolt shot right out in front of him, making him jump back. The lightning hit everywhere, threatening to strike down the villagers. He looked up and found that the entire sky was covered in swirling black, red, blue, and violet clouds, veiling the entire sky in darkness except for the blood moon that hung eerily as bright as ever. All around him, he suddenly heard the loud and intense cackle of a woman, a laugh that caused his whole body to shake in fear. Taliama lay against his body, white as a ghost.

"Tali, are you okay?"

She nodded, holding back a whimper.

"What's wrong? You don't look well."

"It's her," she gasped in horror. "The demon goddess! Her spirit has escaped the volcano and is now in the village! We're all in great danger!"


	10. Hunt for the Host

A chaotic darkness loomed over the tiny island village in the night. Lightning flashed and the ground shook violently, sending the villagers into a horrific frenzy as they ran all over the village, screaming in fear. The cackling of a malevolent woman carried across an ominous wind that surrounded the people, cold and threatening to chill to the soul. The blood red moon rose ever higher into the sky, looking so much like a menacing eye in the starless sky. The foundation of the very earth seemed to tip over the edge right then and there.

The chief appeared in the centre of the village, surrounded on all sides of the panicking villagers. "Silence!" he bellowed, his arms outstretched and his voice swelling across the heavy air. "We all have reason to fear on this prophesized night. Somehow, the demon goddess has escaped the confines of her volcanic domain and has come to our village with the intent of hunting for a host. She comes to bring us terror and destruction, but we shall not give in! I urge you to take whatever weaponry you have and guard your homes with your lives! Protect your wives, mothers, daughters, all the maidens of our village and kept them safe inside the sanctuary of your homes until the danger has passed. They will be shielded by the magic of our High Priestess and the power of our Chosen Ones, who shall seal away this demon goddess once and for all! Hurry!"

Taking head of their chief's words, the villagers headed back into their homes, leading the women inside first while the strongest males guarded the barred doors with knives, spears, and bows and arrows. The High Priestess walked alone to the temple at the foot of the volcano, the only sanctuary to its ominous presence. She walked up to the top and stood in the centre of the rune, eyes closed as she chanted an ancient rune while a mystical gale rose at her feet. When the rune was finished, she opened her eyes, glowing white, and cast her staff towards the village, and a white light was cast over each of the buildings, shielding them in sparkling domes from the impending evil they were awaiting. Her work finished, her legs shook and she collapsed, breathing heavily as she used her staff to hold herself up.

Once the seals were set, the chief rushed back into the palace, his guards quickly coming to his sides. The turtles were waiting in the front hall, weapons ready.

"Is everybody safe inside?" Leo asked.

"I ordered everyone to stay inside their homes, but the men are guarding the doors in order to keep their families safe. I trust you will protect them should the need arrive?"

"We swear it, Your Majesty."

"Finally, a time to fight," Raph growled in pleasure, twirling his sais as flames licked the blades. "I could use a little action tonight." His brothers and sensei just shook their heads in unsurprised disbelief.

They were about to head out into battle when one of the female warriors came up from the training room, carrying a struggling Taliama in her grasp.

"Let me go!" she cried, "I order you to let me go!" She was clad in her own warrior clothes, ready to fight with the turtles until it appeared she had been caught.

"Tali!" Leo gasped.

"Daughter!" the chief cried, walking towards her with a stern look in his eyes. "What is the meaning of this?"

"I caught her in the training room, dressing in our armour," the warrior woman said, "Apparently she was hoping to fight alongside our Chosen Ones."

The chief's eyes narrowed in anger. "Taliama, I thought I told you millions of times not to leave the palace tonight! The goddess is wreaking havoc on our village and I will not have you put yourself in danger like this! You are blind and vulnerable to be taken as a host!"

"Father, please!" Taliama cried, "I never wanted to worry you, but I want to fight and protect my people! You have to trust in me; I have the skills I need to defend myself!"

The warrior woman decided to intervene. "It was a good thing I managed to find her before she could escape." Her head turned surprising quickly toward Leonardo. "I thank you, Chosen One Leonardo, for informing me of the princess's escapades before she got into serious trouble."

Taliama's eyes went wide with shock. "What?" she turned to where she sensed Leonardo's presence, her heart filling with anger and betrayal.

Leo was as shocked as she was. "No, I-"

"Thank you reporting to my warrior, Chosen One," the chief said, interrupting him. He turned back to his daughter and the warrior woman. "Take her to her room and make sure she stays there." He glared at his daughter for a long time, the intensity of it enough to make her understand his fury.

Bowing, the warrior woman took her outside of the front hall, gripping the princess's wrists as she struggled to free herself, screaming at Leonardo as she was dragged away.

"Liar! Traitor!" Tears were falling from Taliama's eyes. "I put my faith in you! I gave you my heart and you betrayed me!"

Leonardo's eyes were dark with anguish as he watched Taliama being taken away. He tried reasoning with the chief, but he refused to listen, ignoring him as he ordered his soldiers around the palace walls for extra protection while he headed back to his throne room. All the turtle could do was hang his head in shame.

Don walked up to his brother. "Leo, did you really-"

Leo turned quickly to face him. "I swear on my honour as a ninja I didn't tell a soul!" His entire body shook with his no-nonsense behaviour. His family knew he was serious about this.

They were about to follow in the princess's direction when Casey, August, and Cornelius came bursting through the front entrance. They were breathing heavily, Cornelius using his hat as a makeshift fan.

"Finally, a safe haven to rest," he complained, rubbing his aching joints. "The sooner I get away from all of this madness, the better." He looked around curiously. "Oh, dear, where are Miss O'Neil and that little rapscallion?"

Their eyes went wide with surprise. They didn't expect Cornelius to care so much, nor did they expect April and Penny to be missing from their group.

"You mean the girls aren't with you?" Don asked.

"We assumed they would be with you," August explained. His body tensed in worry. "This isn't good; if the girls are still out there, they could be in real danger."

They turned to hear the door creek next to them, wide open as someone snuck through it outside in a rush. Casey was gone.

"Stay here," Leo ordered the others as he and his brothers ran out the door and into the village. "We have to find Casey, April, and Penny. The girls are as much targets to the goddess as any of the other villagers and we can't let Casey do anything reckless."

"It's weird though," Don pondered, "I made sure the volcano was secure inside and out, so how did she manage to escape? It could be possible that she used her powers to disguise herself as one of the captured women, but you think we'd be able to figure it out."

"Makes sense," Mikey agreed. "And knowing my comic villainesses, she could have used some charming, sexy powers on one of us in order to escape. Man, I'd feel bad for the poor sucker who let that happen."

Raphael almost froze when he came upon this revelation. "Yeah, what a real bonehead..." he laughed at himself, trying to keep his cool while he silently cursed himself. Luckily, he made sure to block his mind from his brothers.

They were about to split up and search when they were surrounded by a wide variety of shadowed monsters of all sizes, staring at them hungrily while they cackled in high pitched screams. They quickly pulled out their weapons and beckoned their elements to their call, expecting this to happen.

"Well, it looks like we'll have to call off the search for a bit," Raph chuckled. "I'd say this shouldn't take more than five minutes." Twirling his blazing sais, he and his brothers jumped headfirst into the fray.

Meanwhile, Taliama was struggling with the bonds tied around her ankles and wrists, squirming around helplessly as she was thrown into the dungeon. The warrior woman watched sadistically as the princess tried to escape the hold of the ropes.

"You might as well give in," the warrior woman spoke in a voice not quite her own.

Taliama couldn't see what was happening, but her skin prickled as the air around her suddenly grew heavy with a dark aura. The aura around the warrior woman warped and vanished, replaced with the sick darkness that clawed at her lungs, shielded before by a strong veil that made the disguise unnoticed by her spiritual power. She now sensed the dark presence before her, the spirit of the goddess that was hidden from her senses.

"You..." Taliama growled. She could feel the goddess move her spirit form towards her through the dungeon bars, felt her cold aura against her skin as the wicked form admired it deeply.

"_So, this is the daughter of the chief and late High Priestess, two pieces of royalty and intense spirituality formed into one_," the goddess spoke, revelling in the princess's features. "_You have such a strong body and focus of mind; such beauty and youth and the fragrant aroma of the rainforest on your skin_." Taliama shivered as the goddess stroked her wispy fingers along her skin and through her hair. "_It's such a shame you can't appreciate any of this by looking into a mirror, and to think, this is what your mother sacrificed her for_." She sighed, "_Oh, well, a slight imperfection in the otherwise perfect body; it's nothing my power can't fix once you surrender yourself to me_."

Taliama wished the goddess wasn't transparent so she could spit in her face, so she instead swore at her in her native tongue. "I'll never give in to you; I won't let you have my body! I know I'm strong and I can fight back against you!"

"_But what about everyone else_?" The goddess asked, her voice cold as ice. "_Your closed-minded father doesn't care about your strength. All he wants is his little china-doll daughter safe and unharmed, sent to spend her days sitting politely on the throne like some holy maiden while her husband does all the work because she can't do anything with her blindness. And what about your beloved Leonardo_?"

Taliama shut her eyes in pain, her mind dizzy and her heart in pain.

"_Strong, determined, honour bound, it's no wonder he was chosen to stop me from destroying this wretched little mortal world_," she continued. "_He thought of you as an equal, a warrior meant to be reckoned with in spite of you being blind and a woman. You would have given up everything to be with him, even your own pride. You were willing to surrender yourself to be his, and then he goes and smashes it all up by reporting you to your father so you could stay here and let the enabled men do all the work_."

Taliama struggled to stay away, shaking her head away from the goddess's words. She could feel her magic tugging at her conscious, trying to pull her into darkness and take over her body. "No..." she whispered, "That was a lie. You set it up in order to make me lose my trust in him and weaken my guard so you could take over." In order to win, she knew she had keep control over her emotions and use logic and reasoning in order to escape her grasp.

The goddess silently chuckled, not ready to give up. "_Is his trust in you really enough? This 'love' won't be enough to keep you together. Your father would never give you his blessing, even if he is a Chosen One. You have a kingdom to run, one you must give full responsibility to for the rest of your life without him. He's from a different world than yours, more advanced and refined, and so far away from this puny island. How would you be able to survive it all? Besides, he isn't even human, in spite of his human stature and speech. He is a mutation, a freak! If only you had the eyes to see how retched and ugly he truly is_."

"Shut up!" Taliama cried. "I don't need to hear any of that from you, especially knowing what you're trying to do to me."

The goddess smiled, unable to break past the princess's spirit but still sensing her longing for Leonardo. "_You say you don't need eyesight, but do you really mean it? Haven't you always wanted to see everything around you and not just imagine it from what you sense with your fingers and your auras? I think you're beautiful, but what about him? He happens to have eyes, you know. He could think you're ugly and keep his mouth shut out of politeness. Of course, in your condition, you can't really know the truth, can you_?" She was prepared to strike. "_I can make that happen, you know. I can give you your eyes so you can see the light and the colours and shapes around you, the truth of the world that surrounds you_." She grasped onto her body. "_All you need to do is give yourself to me_..."

Taliama could a bright light shifting into her eyes, obscuring everything else in her mind. Slowly, she could make out blurred shapes and colours, a mesh of rainbows and odd forms swimming in her eyes as they came back to life. It was too distorting for her to fight back.

"_Yes_..." the demon goddess whispered into her ear. "_Don't resist, give yourself to me. Let me give you what you desire. And in exchange, you free yourself of body and mind and let me inside you, to take over this wretched pain of existence. I shall ease your torment and give you pleasure only my power can provide, my lovely host. You'll bask in a deep bliss under my control and free yourself from the love of this Leonardo_."

The name triggered her mind back into herself. If the goddess had taken her over, she could see her memories through the memory of vision and of what Leonardo truly looked like. But she didn't want to know. To her, his imagined image was like a never-ending surprise that should never be spoiled. It didn't matter to her what he really was or looked like; the real him was formed by the aura in his heart that she could sense clearer than any of her other senses. That was all she needed.

With all of her might, she broke free of her bonds and clutched her head in pain, shrieking as loudly as she could to get the goddess out of her mind. With her power of spirit that was passed down to her from her priestess bloodline, she called upon the power of the gods and was surrounded by a white light, her spiritual power breaking away the goddess's attachment to her mind permanently. The goddess shrunk back in horror while the princess glared at her with misty but furious eyes.

"I love Leonardo," she roared at the demonic spirit, "and that's enough to fight back against you!"

She suddenly heard her prison bars open as she sensed three presences standing in front of her, hoping to protect her from another onslaught of emotional torture.

"I may not have the same godly powers my sons have been blessed with," she heard Splinter cry, "but I will do whatever it takes to make sure you will not harm another denizen of this village again!"

"_Tough talk for such an ugly rodent_!" the spirit scoffed, "_Well, no matter, I suspected the princess would be too strong for me anyway. At least there's one more available host for me out there, and the moon will reach its zenith soon enough_!"

She escaped through a dark portal beneath her, while a figure arose from the darkness as she disappeared into the shadows. "_Here is my captive, as she has done her part but is far too young to be of any further use to me_!"

As she cackled into nothingness, Penny emerged from the shadows, lying unconscious and Ukili trying hopelessly to wake her up.

"Penny!" the four cried out, lifting her up gently as she slowly fluttered her eyes open.

"Wha...Where am I?" the little girl asked. When she was fully conscious, she rose to her feet and hurried toward the exit, but not before Cornelius caught her. "Let go! Let go! We've got to save her!"

"Slow down, little one," Splinter hushed her, hoping to calm her down. "Now tell us, what's happened to you?"

"Well, when the whole village was in a panic I got separated from April and when she was looking for me, I got caught by a bunch of shadow creatures and then I woke here just a few seconds ago. I think the evil goddess wants to use April as a host body! We've got to warn her and keep her safe before she gets to her!"

"Well, she's not getting a hold of my niece, that's for sure!" August growled. He took a spear from the wall for him and Cornelius to use and handed Taliama back her elbow blades. "Come on, we have to warn April and find Casey before it's too late!"

So they ran out of the dungeons and into the ominous silence of the village outside, precautions of the dangers that awaited them.

Casey was frantically searching the shoreline for April and Penny, worry pushing him further on as quickly as he could. He looked all over the village for them and still no sign of either. Every place he looked without any results, he became more and more anxious.

He cupped his hands around his mouth again. "April! Penny! Where are you guys?"

He listened to the waves move over the sand in order to calm himself down. He knew Penny was too young to be an eligible sacrifice, but what about April? He wanted to rip out a tree in all of his nervousness.

He was about to turn around and head back when he spotted April standing on the shoreline, wearing a white sundress as her bare feet sunk into the sand and the wind blew through her hair.

"April?" Casey called out, surprised, "Boy am I glad I found you. But do you know where Penny is? I mean, you wouldn't just be standing around here on the beach while she was missing, would ya?"

As he moved closer to her, she turned from the sea to his direction, her eyes hypnotically gazing into his. Casey's face went red at her gaze and he found that he couldn't stop staring at her, her deep red hair blowing in the wind and her ivory skin sparkling in the moonlight.

'Wha..." Casey tried to regain his thought process. "What are ya doing, April? And what's with that get-up? I mean, you look...really beautiful in that sundress, but-"

He was cut off as she wordlessly walked to him and pressed her lips his, taking hold of him in her arms and her fingers threading through his dark hair. Casey's eyes went wide in surprised, but he quickly closed them as he cupped April's face in his hands. He had no idea why she was doing this, but he didn't care. His lips tasted so divinely that he couldn't think straight. He just stood there motionlessly as he deepened the kiss with April.

"Penny, where are you?"

April had been wandering the jungle for nearly an hour, searching all over hoping to find Penny after they got separated in all of the chaos in the village. She was warned not be out by herself this night, but she couldn't leave Penny all alone on the island. She was already growing a maternal instinct for her.

In the thicket of the forest, Penny, Ukili, Splinter, August, Cornelius, and Taliama had been following April's trail through the jungle thanks to the princess's tracking of her aura. She could sense the goddess and Casey nearby, but unaware of what they were doing. Looking on ahead, Penny and Ukili followed Taliama's directions towards the beach, where they discovered Casey locked in a deep kiss with the goddess disguised as April. They gasped in shock as they beheld the sight and hurried towards the real April's direction to warn her. They were about to scream that she was heading into a trap when the shadow creatures snuck up behind them and clamped their mouths shut, keeping the little girl and animal from revealing their plans.

As April drew closer to the shoreline, she though she spotted a familiar figure in the distance. "Casey, is that you?"

Penny was frantic now, struggling as hard as she could to free herself from the shadow creatures. She prayed frantically with all of her heart to escape and even began chanting versus from her books that were used to ward off evil spirits. To her surprised, the shadow's grip began to weaken, and when she was ready, she broke free of their hold and tumbled out of the thicket and onto April's path. Shocked, April was about to ask where she had been when Penny stepped in front of her.

"Don't look, April!" she screamed. "It's a trap!"

Unfortunately, instead of heading her warning, April looked on ahead in curiosity of what was troubling Penny and her heart shattered at the site she beheld. There was Casey, the man she loved, standing on the beach locking lips with a woman with flowing ebony hair and ivory skin, both humans unaware of the illusion before them. There was a peaceful tender bliss on Casey's face as he was lost in the woman's lips, a look that April had secretly longed to share with him someday. All of the moments they had spent together since this adventure began suddenly lost all meaning to her, her love and trust in him washed away in tears that blurred her vision of this sight, and she was thankful for it. An anguished squeal came from her mouth as she broke out into sobs, and she turned away and ran, Penny close behind her but too slow to catch up.

It was that first sob that had caught Casey's attention and he broke away from the kiss in curiously, shocked to find April bursting into tears at the edge of the forest.

"April?" He cried out to her, but she had already turned away and disappeared into the forest before he could catch up. "April, wait!" He was about to chase after her when it had hit him. If that was April, then who was the woman he had passionately kissed just moments ago?

He turned around to the maniacal laughter behind him and froze as he saw before him the woman April had seen moments ago, hair as black as night and her skin looking colder than ice.

She grinned devilishly at him. "Thanks for the kiss, handsome!" Cackling louder, she rose into the sky and transformed back into the spirit, flying in April's direction as he tried to follow after her but was surrounded on all sides by the shadows. He spotted the others coming towards him to help when they too were captured by the shadows, Taliama the only one who managed to escape. They all flew towards her, fighting her and drawing her away from the captives as the shadows quickened their hold on their captives. Before Casey could out for help, a heavy darkness loomed over his head and his whole world went black.

April was sitting on an empty log in the middle of the rainforest, crying her eyes out, not carrying if anyone heard her. Her heart was torn and her mind cloudy, trying to get rid of the image of Casey sharing such a passionate moment with another woman. If only her heart had been closed off to him before, where she would just shrug it off and deny her jealously. But she had been thinking, and she had realized and admitted to herself that she had fallen in love with Casey Jones, and that made the pain so much harder to deal with. But it made things easier for the goddess to take control.

The goddess floated smoothly over to April's form, her spirit hovering inches from her body. "_Oh, you poor, poor woman_," she whispered to her, "_Look at yourself, sitting here all alone, crying over some worthless man_."

April didn't respond, keeping her hands buried in her face. She could feel the sinister presence next to her, but she was too forlorn to do anything. She didn't quite agree with her, but she couldn't find the words or spirit to defend Casey either. The image of him kissing that woman was seared into her mind.

The goddess moved closer to her, brushing her fingers against April's heart, enflaming the hurt, anger, and betrayal within. "_There is no use fighting for him. Did you honestly think that he cared about you, that he was 'kind' and 'gentle'_?" She mockingly laughed at the idea, but it was more directed to April. "_What you believed was merely a hopeless dream, shattered by the harsh reality that he could easily find someone far more beautiful than you_."

April's heart ached even more and she couldn't think straight. All she could remember about Casey now was that he had betrayed her and nothing else. Her mind was covered in fog, a mist created by her emotions and growing thicker because of the goddess's hurtful words. She sunk lower into herself.

"_He will never appreciate your gifts and spirit_," the goddess continued, "_for it will never be enough for him or anyone else. But I can change that for you_." She lifted April's chin, forcing the woman to look deep into her empty onyx eyes. "_I can make you a queen among humans, beautiful and wise beyond your years. You will have power, so much power over others that they can never betray you again. Or perhaps you have something else in mind_?"

April turned her head away from the spirit. Her heart continued to ache and the awful image of Casey was still there. When she closed her eyes, she saw him; when she opened her eyes, she saw the world around her distorted by tears. The fog grew thicker in her mind and consciousness. She was beyond reason now with this demon spirit.

"I just want the hurt to go away," she cried, her voice cracking. The fog had consumed her and Casey's image continued to stab at her heart. "I never want to see him ever again! He hurt me and I want it all to go away!"

The goddess smiled upon hearing this. "_Then all you have to do is surrender yourself to me and give me your body for me to do as I please. In exchange, I shall numb the sadness for you, so you will never be hurt by anyone else again. Your suffering in your heart shall end and you shall be mine_..."

April knew there was something wrong with this, but her head was so filled up with her emotions that she couldn't resist. She could feel the goddess's spirit enter inside of her and herself growing weaker, but the darkness in her heart was so soothing that her mind was still, waiting for this spirit to consume her entirely and silence the pain. Her heart felt cold and empty but it was calm and silent, so much that her grasp on her body and mind was slipping until her whole being faded into the nothingness.

Back at the village, the turtles were still fighting the shadows that had swarmed the village, becoming exhausted as there was no end in sight to the shadow's summoning. They fought with all of the skill they could muster, but their arms were growing heavy and stiff and their chakra was draining from the overuse of their powers. It kept on until Donatello turned to the volcano and noticed something.

"Look!" Don cried, pointing towards the sky.

The swirling cloud above the volcano was turning a deep red, lighting flashing around the top while an ominous chanting filled the wind. They could hear it coming from the shadows around them. The moon was slowly rising higher above the sky; they were running out of time.

Suddenly, the shadows they were fighting sunk back into the ground again, transforming into a cryptic symbol that surrounded the turtles. They tried to escape, but they were not quick enough, as the ground below them turned into dark slime that felt like quicksand, and they were sinking fast. They used whatever tactics they could to escape, but the slime had bound their arms and legs, and now they were slowly sinking into deep darkness, crying out in vein.

For a while the darkness lasted, blocking out all sense of communication and movement between the four brothers. However, they soon found themselves being dropped into an opening and landed toppled on top of each other as they were dropped on the hard ground. It seemed the circle the shadows had formed was a portal that sent them to the enemy's desired destination, whatever that was.

They quickly looked around and found that they were not the only ones there. On the floor lay Splinter, Casey, August, Cornelius, Penny, Ukili, and Taliama, who were only now regaining consciousness. They quickly rushed over to help.

"Is everyone alright?" Leo asked, helping up his sensei and the princess.

Splinter slowly nodded. "Yes, we're fine. But I'm afraid it will not last for long. The goddess may have already found a suitable host and the moon is drawing closer to its zenith."

"But how are we supposed to stop her if we don't even know where we are?"

They appeared to be in some sort of tunnel, much lighter than the caverns below but not any less menacing. They could hear the rumbling of the volcano around the walls, suspecting that they were back inside its hidden tunnels. It was a perfectly linear tunnel, one end blocked off, and the other headed towards an opening of light. Taking their chances, the group headed towards the solitary opening.

The opening led them into a circular chamber surrounded by a magical barrier, seemingly sealed off from the rest of the outside world within the volcano. Lava bubbled below them while a thin platform of rock stretched halfway across the chamber, the group's only support from the fiery pool below. Just where the outcropping of rock ended, there was a thin path than sloped upwards like a staircase, where at the top sat a large throne veiled in black silk. There was a silhouette that sat behind the throne, raising its pale arm slightly to brush away the silk veil and reveal itself to the turtles, weapons ready for combat. When the figure freed itself from the black silk cocoon around the throne, they almost dropped their weapons in horror.

The figure smiled down on them haughtily from the top step, pale skin covered in a black silk gown that gave off the notion of a diabolical matriarch. The fabric was shaped to look like insect wings and the piece along her collarbone was encrusted with black, red, blue, and violet jewels. Her arms were covered in black silk gloves and the shoulders of her dress sprouted sharp, thick spider leg-like fringes. She wore a silver diadem over her long flowing scarlet hair, the centre piece a blood red jewel that matched the colour of her hypnotized eyes, eyes that were not her own.

Casey screamed in despair and revulsion. "APRIL!"


	11. Battle with the Demon Goddess Pt 1

The turtles and their friends stood frozen in horror at the sight that stood before them. She was only a few feet from them, placed before them on a high stone dais where a pool of lava bubbled below them, in this volcanic chamber that seemed to rest outside of space and time. This was the goddess they had been warned about, the one who threatened to destroy this island and the world it rested upon, with little disregard for the human host she needed to plant herself into the mortal world. Michelangelo would describe the sensation of ultimately appearing in her presence as "getting to the final boss", but the overwhelming actuality of it had kept him from making any witty remarks. Neither he, nor his brothers were even sure if one life for each of them would be enough to defeat her and beat this all too realistic video game scenario.

However, it was not the goddess herself that had horrified the turtles, but rather the host body she had taken to fulfill her desires. They saw the malevolent goddess within her eyes, but the body was of April, their oldest human friend. She was always kind and down-to-earth and always willing to help her friends and fight back. How could someone like her have given in to this atrocious demon spirit and let her consume her body? However, now that the confrontation had begun, there didn't appear to be any time to answer those questions.

"_Welcome, Chosen Ones_," the goddess said. She had spoken with April's voice, yet there was demonic undertone to it. "_I must admit, you've surprised me tonight. I didn't think you'd all be able to make it this far, especially on the night of my resurrection. You must really be determined to surrender yourselves to the tribal leaders and fulfill the prophecy. However, I'm afraid your obedience to the gods won't pay off for you if you plan to fight against me in your mere mortal forms._

Neither turtle was listening to her, all four of them with their weapons drawn and ready.

"Enough talk!" Leo growled, "What have you done with our friend April? Release her at once!"

The goddess sneered at him. "_I'm afraid I can't release her. You see, I need a human host in order to resurrect myself back into the mortal world and send it into total chaos and destruction, and I happen to like the feel of your friend's here._" She looked at herself admiringly, "_So as you can see, I won't be giving it up anytime soon_." She giggled mockingly.

Don bravely stepped forward in front of her. "Oh yeah? Well, if I know our April, she'd never be so weak as to give herself up so easily!" Don looked directly into the goddess's eyes. "Come on, April, I know you're in there somewhere! You've gotta snap out of it! You've gotta-"

Annoyed, the goddess cast her hand out towards Donatello and sent a spiral of black lightning through his body, lifting him off of the ground and throwing him hard into the wall, sending a flurry of stone pieces down on his body as he fell onto the ground. All of his family and friends cried out in concern and gathered around his side, protecting him as he lifted himself back up.

"_Sorry, but your friend April can't hear you anymore. She is under my power and my control, which means I can do whatever I please without any hesitation!_"

In demonstration of her power, she sent another black spiral towards Leonardo, but Michelangelo was quick and created a shield of wind around his brother to stop the attack. However, the goddess increased her dark powers and distorted the winds protecting Leonardo, redirecting the dark magic right at Michelangelo, sending him flying across the platform and almost into the lava below. Raphael managed to catch him below he fell and in his fury sent a barrage of fire spheres at the witch. The goddess raised a shield of black magic and reflected the spheres back at Raphael and Michelangelo, but Leonardo dowsed them with a water shield of his own. The turtle formed two long water whips over his arms and flung them towards the goddess in hopes of capturing her, but she took control of them and sent them back towards Leonardo, where they wrapped around his body tightly, almost choking him. Taking control, she lifted Leonardo skywards and slammed him back down onto the ground. Raphael and Michelangelo tried to help, but the goddess slammed them both with their brother's own technique. Donatello was the only one left and, fearing the others would get hurt, cast a rocky barrier over them while he stood his ground and cast a tomb of rock over the goddess, hoping to capture her. She quickly broke out of the tomb with her own dark aura and sent the pieces back at Donatello, who sent them flying back with his staff. The last piece, however, had caught him off guard and struck his head, sending him falling dizzily to the ground.

The goddess indulged in maniacal laughter at their misfortune. _"Such a pity. I would have expected much more from warriors chosen by the gods, but they should have known better than to choose mere mortals as their weapons against me._" She readied herself for the finishing blow. _"I wish I could let you live to witness the end of days, but you're not even worth the slow, painful death I plan to unleash upon the world._"

Just as she was about to strike, Taliama appeared and sent a white wall of magic from her fingertips to ward off the goddess's presence.

"Did you forget that I was here, demon?" Taliama growled. "I may be blind, but the stench of your aura is so overwhelming I imagine your true form is as repulsive as your scent!"

The goddess glared at her in fury. "_Why, you little..._"

She was about to send another dark energy wave in Taliama's direction when Penny snuck behind her and leaped onto her shoulders, covering her eyes and bound her arms. The goddess tried to throw her off, but Penny was persistent.

"You stupid, mean goddess!" Penny shouted, "You leave Miss April and my friends alone!"

As the goddess continued to struggle against Penny's grip, August and Cornelius saw their chance and tackled the goddess headfirst into the ground, rendering her motionless against their grip.

"Sorry, April," August sighed, "but it's for your own good."

"Don't worry about her, old boy," Cornelius said, "your niece shall be back in no time. I've seen nannies back in my home country that put up more of a fight than this witch did." As he chuckled, the turtles, getting back onto their feet, could have sworn that they had died during the fight.

The goddess, in all of her anger and hatred, forced the three off of her with her magic, sending them flying back onto the back wall next to the turtles. They could barely move, and Penny felt a small patch of blood on the back of her head. Ukili, crying out, licked Penny's cheek desperately in worry. The goddess drew nearer towards them, a murderous look in her eyes.

"_You insignificant humans,_" the goddess growled, "_Now I will show you what happens when you rebel against your all-powerful sovereign!_"

The goddess drew herself closer to Penny, who clutched Ukili in fright and tried to fight back the tears falling from her eyes. She sent a course of black magic through her hands, and her fingers turned into long, thin claws, capable of slicing through living flesh. The turtles were rushing to the aid of their friends as the goddess readied to strike when Casey flew out of hiding and struck his fist into the goddess's stomach, knocking the wind out of her host body and sending her flying back from his friends, barely able to stand on her feet. Casey picked up one of the spears August and Cornelius had taken for themselves and held it with the spearhead on the bottom, planning to use it as a blunt weapon. He tried striking the goddess every chance he got, but she kept dodging his blows, so quickly that he almost fell over the edge of the platform. He took another swing at the goddess when she caught it in her hands, the two of them struggling to take it.

The goddess could sense the hatred in Casey's eyes. "_Good ahead, take this spear and run it through her heart. It's already been ripped apart enough thanks to you._" She could feel him hesitating, but he was still resisting. "_Just remember that this is merely a human host. If you plan on killing me inside this body, it shall be your beloved April who dies!_"

Casey's eyes went wide and his grip on the staff loosened, but he was prepared to steal it back if the goddess planned to stab him or knock him out with its blunt size. But as he was prepared for these outcomes, she suddenly tossed the spear away into the molten pool below and clutched at his throat, blocking out his airway with her long, strong fingers. Everyone rushed to his aid, but the goddess laughed in triumph as she used her magic to deflect them, squeezing harder at Casey's throat.

Casey wasn't sure how much longer he could hold on. He tried pulling the goddess's hands away from his throat or breaking apart her fingers to give himself some air, but he found himself getting weaker, his head feeling dizzy and splotches forming in his eyes. Fearing the end, he tried one last attempt to get through to April and brushed his free hand against her cheek.

"April..." he gasped with all of his might. "It's me...Casey. Don't you recognize me?" He coughed in a desperate attempt for air. "You've gotta... fight back, April...I know you can hear me...in there! I...believe...in...you..."

Casey felt the tight grip around his throat disappear and his body fall hard on the ground, and as he steadied himself, he gasped and tried to regain as much air as he could. The others rushed to him, helping his steady his breathing. When Casey looked back at the goddess, her figure was hunched over on the ground and her blood red eyes turned to clear emerald green.

"April?" Casey gasped.

April looked up at him, confused and frightened. "C...Casey...?" She clutched her head and hollered in pain. The goddess was trying to take control again.

Casey grasped April's shoulders and forced her to look into his eyes. "It's okay, April, I'm here! Listen, I know you can fight this thing! You've just gotta focus and force her out of your mind, okay?"

He waited for her response and was met with the goddess swiping at his face. He dodged quickly, but was caught off guard as she used her magic and flung him towards the wall, knocking him onto his back. She stood back up, trying to retain her dignity.

"_You'd do well to know your proper place, mortal_," the goddess growled. "_This body's spirit is far too weak to be speaking to you, let alone attempt to break free of my control. Besides, with the heartache you've caused still intact, possessing this girl's body is still mere child's play to be._"

"Hey, kids can play pretty ferociously, you know," Mikey retorted, "Don't underestimate the children!" Playing as the comic relief again seemed to calm his nerves.

Penny whooped in agreement. "You tell her, Mikey!" After making such a remark, both she and Michelangelo were nearly hit by a dark streak of lighting.

Casey was struggling to get up, not willing to give up on April. He thought hard about what the goddess had said earlier and realized that April was still feeling dejected after watching him kissing the demon witch unintentionally, remaining unaware of the trap.

"April, listen to me!" Casey yelled, "If this is about that whole 'you-seeing-me-kiss-another-chick' thing on the beach, I can explain."

The turtles, unaware of what had transpired at the time, looked bewilderedly at him. "What are you talking about, Case?" Raph asked.

"That woman you saw me kissing was really that demon goddess in disguise, and I only did it because she camouflaged herself to look like you! It was a trap and I only fell for it because I thought it was really you!"

The goddess scoffed, but they could see a slight wavering in her eyes. "_A likely story. You could easily be telling a lie in order to excuse yourself from your infidelity. You do a woman wrong by betraying her love and trust, you know,_" she laughed, "_not that _I_ care or anything."_

"But it's the truth!" Penny cried, "I saw you disguised as April and you tricked Casey into kissing you so that when April saw you, you'd be devastated, because to her, you'd appear as your ordinary self!"

"The young one does not lie," Taliama added, "for I was informed that you had taken on the facade of the woman April, but I could still sense your aura in that fake form."

"_But the damage has been done and you cannot save her now, her emotions uprising with betrayal and hatred for you!_" The goddess had spoken in a mocking tone, but her body language expressed a sense of hurt and dejection.

Casey ignored the goddess, speaking directly to April. "Then use logic for a second! April, I know you're feeling awful about what happened and I'm sorry for what I did, but I know you're not the kind of girl that lets her emotions take over her entire life; you use your head! Think about it! If you saw me kissing someone else, who made me think I was kissing you, don't you think that it would be part of her big master plan or something?"

Don nodded in agreement. "Casey's right. Having April in such a susceptible state of mind after witnessing such a traumatizing event would give the demon goddess an opportunity to overwhelm April and invade her body!"

"April, we were both set up! You know I'd never do anything to hurt you! It was all a plan to get you to surrender your body!"

The goddess suddenly clutched her head in pain. "_Meaningless words and ideas. They only make the human heart all the more cold and indifferent. All that matters is that he's betrayed you; let your grief and hatred consume you._"

Her eyes suddenly flickered to green. "No, he's...right. He wouldn't just do something like that, not everything we've been through. I know he's...not that...kind of guy."

The goddess fought back hard. "_To know is meaningless; there is only feeling. Don't think; hate. Hate until your hatred and mine become one!_"

"No...I can't...let that stuff...take over...my...thinking. I know better...to trust my friends...than to give in and hurt them like this..."

"_Silence, you brat!_"

The demon goddess shrieked into the air, trying to force April out of her mind once and for all. In her madness, she flew towards the entire party and slashed rapidly through the air, hoping to strike and silence them all. The turtles were quick to react, dodging and blocking whatever attacks they could. She summoned dark spirals from her fingers again, more powerful from before, but they managed to fight back by combining their powers to strengthen their hold and take her down when she was caught off guard. She was so preoccupied with the turtles that she lost her attention on their allies, who snuck from behind and knocked her down as hard as they could without hurting April. When the goddess had enough, she sent dark magic to wrap around their bodies, constricting them feet from the floor and restricting their air flows. Her magic was sharp enough to slice off their heads or throw them into the lava below, and she was prepared to do just that, cackling in triumph.

She suddenly felt an aching pain in her head and shrieked, dropping to the floor with everyone else with her. She clutched her head tightly and her eyes flicked back to green.

"NO!" April shouted. "I won't...let you...use me for this!"

They all cried out for her as she dropped to her knees while still grasping her head, convulsing as she struggled for control. They were about to head over to her when the room suddenly shook all around them, the illumination around the chamber fading into a dark, deep red. Above them, they could see the ceiling cracking open and the moon high above them. The blood red moon was almost near its zenith.

The goddess looked to the sky in pleasure. "_It is almost time! My resurrection has almost come to pass! And once the moon is centred above me, there's not a damn thing you fools can do about it! This body shall be my permanent vessel and I shall take over this planet once and for all._"

Casey was unwilling to give up. "Don't let her do this to ya, April! You can't give in! You have to fight it!"

"_You're too late! The hour is nigh and she has already submitted to my control! There's nothing you can do to save her now!_"

Casey rushed over to the goddess, still determined, and cupped his hands around April's face. He could sense that a part of her was still fighting back, as the goddess did nothing to throw him back.

"I know you're barely hanging in there, April," Casey said, "and I know you could lose yourself at any minute and let this goddess take over the world. But if you're still in there somewhere, I wanna let you know that no matter what happens you're not alone in this fight. I...I love you, April, and I hope this'll be enough to break this spell."

As the goddess cried out in protest, Casey gently pressed his lips against April's, holding the goddess in place as she thrashed around to free herself. However, the thrashing eventually subsided and the hands that were before tearing at his skin were now softly wrapped around his neck, April regaining her body and returning the kiss in full.

The moon reached its zenith above them, and in the hue of the dark red night, the two deepened the kiss, enflaming the passion and their refusal to let each other go, even as April began slipping from Casey's grasp and into the sky, the cackling of the goddess trapped in her throat. Lightning flashed everywhere as the goddess was summoned into the demonic cloud above, striking near Casey and flinging him back onto the ground, forcing him to let April go. As she arose, the goddess laughed maniacally into the heavens, prepared for her demonic resurrection.

She was suddenly struck by a blinding light coursing from Taliama's hands, grounded and focused on the figure with all of her spiritual might. She beckoned the turtles to her call.

"I need you to focus all of your energy on her body," she said, "Once the moon reaches its zenith, the transfiguration begins to permanently fuse the spirit and mind into one, but if we're strong enough, we can force the spirit out of April's body for good. It is a very slim chance, but now that April is resisting, we may have a shot at freeing her. Are you ready?"

"Yeah!" the turtles cried.

Each of the five focused on the core of their elements, tapping into its deepest potential. Leonardo called onto the heart of the ocean; Donatello called onto the heart of the forest and the earth; Michelangelo called onto the heart of the gales and gusts in the air; Raphael called onto the heart of the hot scorching blazes in the core of the world; and Taliama called onto the heart of the spirit world where her mother and her ancestors and pleaded to them to give her strength. They contained as much of the elements' powers as they could, begging them to save their friend from being taken as a host. Then, arms outstretched, they released their core energy and directed it at the goddess's host body.

"WATER!" Leo cried, unleashing an intense cerulean beam.

"EARTH!" Don cried, unleashing an intense jade beam.

"AIR!" Mikey cried, unleashing an intense sallow beam.

'FIRE!" Raph cried, unleashing an intense crimson beam.

"SPIRIT!" Taliama cried, unleashing a beam of purest white.

All five of these concentrated elements struck the goddess directly, who screamed in agony as she struggled to fight them away. But the five were persistent, focusing their energy harder at the goddess, who was convulsing in pain. As she disappeared above the clouds, still surrounded by their concentrated power, the scenery transformed into pure whiteness and they could it shifting underneath their feet. The light was so intense that they had to shield their eyes, but the five never lost their focus on April's captured body.

When the light vanished and they could see again, the turtles and their friends found themselves standing on the rim around the mouth of the volcano, at the very top of the whole island. It was large enough that they could all stand on it evenly without losing their balance, but within the volcano, the pool of lava was still sitting there, waiting eagerly for a sacrifice. The only thing left was a thin path of rock that led to the centre of the mouth, and at the very end was April, lying there motionless.

"April!" Casey cried, sprinting towards her, the other carefully following behind him.

When he finally reached April, he knelt down to her and lifted her head onto his lap. He gently stroked her face and lightly shook her, trying to wake her up.

"April? April, can you hear me?" Casey cried. Tears were beginning to form in his eyes. "Come, April, please wake up!"

Everyone looked at each other worriedly, trying not to think of the worst.

"She's a pretty tough fighter, Case," Raph said assumingly, "She ain't giving up this easily."

"Regardless of what happens," Leo added, "you did whatever you could. We all did."

Casey knew they were right, but he was still scared and was trying desperately to hold back his sobs. A single tear had slipped from his eyes and feel onto April's cheek, and from the corner of his, eyes, Casey spotted a slight flickering of her eyelids.

"April?" he said, hopeful. He lifted her up higher so she was steadier in his arms. "April, can you hear me?"

April frailly opened her eyes to find Casey looking back at her, tears in his sweet sapphire blue eyes. She smiled weakly at him and cradled her head in his shoulder.

"Hey," she whispered. She could no longer feel the presence of the goddess inside of her. "Thank you, Casey...I'm sorry I ever doubted you."

All Casey could do was hold her closer while the others cheered in triumph. Penny was ecstatic and dancing with Ukili in her arms, and even Cornelius was doing a little jig of his own. The heavy atmosphere had evaporated around them, and as April regained her strength, she brushed her fingers against Casey's face and the two resumed their passionate kiss from before.

Taliama, however, was not relieved and looked to the sky in urgency. "Don't think this is over yet," she warned them, "The goddess has been released from April's body, but she has regained her true power and is ready to destroy this world once and for all." She readied her elbow blades. "Get ready."

Sure enough, they heard the same shriek of laugher coming from the spiralling cloud and moved back to the edge in preparation of for battle, looking skywards with their weapons unsheathed . A black figure descended from the clouds, one as tall as the volcano and ten times as threatening. Giant ebony wings protruded from the goddess's back, her skin covered in scales and her hands and feet transformed into talons. A dark mist swirled over her that was blacker than coal, the goddess's blood red eyes the only thing that could pierce through it. She perched herself deafeningly on the rim of the volcano, and the turtles branded their weapons to her, ready for the final battle.


	12. Battle with the Demon Goddess Pt 2

The night sky was clouded in darkness. Lightning struck and illuminated it for only a few moments, each strike more rapid and deadly that the last. The entire island was shaded in the deep red hue of the blood full moon, and its eeriness was having an effect on it. The waves were crashing wildly on the shore, the animals grew restless, and the plants were wilting in the negative light. Its aura spread across the world; it was a sign that the end was nigh.

The chieftain and his tribe watched from the sanctuary of their homes the dark twisted figure standing atop the volcano at the heart of their island. The prophecy had come to pass; the goddess had found a human host and had regained her power and returned to the mortal world, but they could see that the ritual had been incomplete. Even with all of her power returned to her, she had been forced out of her host body at the last minute, otherwise she would had destroyed them all seconds after her ritual had been complete. All they could do was pray that the Chosen Ones could save them from utter destruction. At the temple summit, the High Priestess closed her eyes and put herself into a deep trance, summoning all of the magic of the island and her ancestors into her.

The turtles were rooted into the rim around the mouth of the volcano, gazing upward into the face of evil that was staring back at them. This was the goddess they had been sent to fight, with only their weapons and the power of the elements at their sides. Princess Taliama was at their side, without sight, but also without fear, prepared to use her sense of aura as well her other senses in order to beat this demonic idol. Behind them were their friends, without any equal means to fight back, but strong in spirit: Casey and April embracing each other in comfort; Penny and Ukili clinging to them; professors August and Cornelius standing shoulder to shoulder as old colleagues and friends; and the turtles' sensei Splinter standing alone nonchalantly, behind his sons and students to give them their full support. Above them, the goddess looked fiercely at them in atrocious joy.

The goddess's cackle stretched across the heavens. "_So turtles, we finally meet, truly face to face. You may have succeeded in freeing my host body from my grasp, but I've still managed to regain my former power and will take great pleasure in annihilating you once and for all!"_

The turtles gripped their weapons, ready for combat. "Bring it on, witch!" Raph growled.

The goddess flew into the air and cast a large beam of dark energy at the turtles, all of them jumping out of the way in time. Taliama took her stance and summoned her spirit magic and created a shield around the others, ensuring that they wouldn't get caught in the turmoil. When the attack had cleared, she turned towards Splinter's aura and grabbed his shoulders, sending a wave of white magic through him.

"Your sons are going to need me if they want to win," she explained, "If something happens, I trust you to be able to hold up the shield and protect yourselves." She bowed her head low to him, a sign of great respect for someone of her status. Splinter said nothing but simply returned the bow and Taliama jumped back into the fight.

The turtles and Taliama took their fight with the demon goddess around the rim of the volcano. She continued her battle with them by firing burst of dark energy at them. She had fired great beams at them like last time, but the turtles were quick to dodge and block her attacks, wielding more power from the elements than before. Leonardo was casting the dark magic away with giant tides of water he summoned from his hands; Donatello was attacking with much larger chunks of earth and vines that stretched up all the way from the rainforest canopy; Michelangelo could feel the winds of a furious storm behind him as he gathered as much wind as he could to keep the goddess away from him; and Raphael was using the open volcano to his advantage, lifting the lava from it and sending it in the direction of the goddess. Now that she was no longer using April's body against them, they were free to use as much power as they could.

The goddess didn't stick to the same attack for long. Instead of firing in long beams, she began releasing them as sharp discs of energy that could travel in any direction. They had been hit a few times, but were quick to get back on their feet. When they found that they rim of the volcano gave them very limited space, Michelangelo decided to use his powers to lift the others from the ground and gave them all the ability of flight.

Mikey whooped at the success of his plan. "Wahoo! Check it out, guys! We can fly!" He soared around freely, taunting the demon goddess.

She was quick to respond, zooming towards him on her wings and nearly striking him with her talons. Now that they could fight, they decided to take the fight to the sky. The goddess attacked them furiously with her talons and dark magic, but they used whatever advantage they could, utilizing their powers, but also striking with their weapons. Even with all of her power, with the infused energy of the turtle, the goddess was vulnerable to their blades and blunt tools. Once she was distracted, Taliama was able to strike her down with her pure magic and leave the goddess defenceless to attack by all five of them.

The battle had gone on for some time, but they could not check on how long, time seeming to freeze once the moon had reached its zenith. They were both becoming weary, the battle of the gods carrying on in endless time. Once they were quick enough to avoid another attack, the five of them used their chance to utilize their powers and focused all of them into one attack. Five beams of light surrounded the demon goddess once again when she was down, and with all their might, they threw the goddess into the sweltering lava of the volcano, the demon screaming in agony as she plummeted into the fiery pool below.

As her form vanished, the five of them landed back onto the rim, collapsing as soon as their feet touched the ground. They had used their power to the fullest potential, and they were paying the price of a lack of energy. Their friends quickly came to their aid.

"My sons, are you alright?" Splinter asked concerned.

"We're fine...sensei," Leo answered, gasping.

They all looked down into the boiling pool. "Is it over?" Mikey asked wearily.

Suddenly, the volcano shook violently under their feet, almost making them loose their balance and falling in. "Don't count on it," Don answered.

Their fears were answered as singed wings rose into the air, revealing the goddess in all of her hatred and fury. Her entire body was scorched by the lava, her skin red and boiling and her scales charred black and falling off. Her talons looked as sharp as diamonds.

"_Don't think this is the end of me!_" she shrieked in anger and pain. "_You may have injured me greatly, but you can never kill an immortal! As long as I am here, your world belongs to me!_"

The volcano shook harder and it was all they could take to stand firmly on their feet. They looked back down into the volcano and saw the lava turn black and as thin as air, slowly swirling into a sphere of darkness below. A great gale of air was flowing into the current, sucking all of the rock within the volcano into its abyss. The opening of the volcano had turned into a vortex.

"_This is the ultimate power of magic I unleash unto you now,_" the goddess slowly chuckled, "_It is the portal that had sealed me back into the demon world on the other side, but now that it is under my control, I shall use it for my every whim._" Her chuckle was picking up speed. She sounded like she had slipped into deep insanity. "_This portal shall act like a black hole, absorbing everything in its path! First this volcano, then this island, and finally it will spread across the world until the entire universe is filled to the brim with darkness and under my control!" _Her chuckle broke into a high pitched cackle that chilled them to the bone in her madness.

Leo turned to his brother urgently. "We've got to stop her!"

"But...how?" Mikey asked, his voice cracking in fear. "She just made a black hole in the centre of a volcano! How the shell are we supposed to stop something like that?"

"There's only one way," Taliama informed them. "We have to capture the goddess and regain control of the portal so that we can seal her back into the other world where she belongs. However, it's going to take all of the power we can get in order for this to work. You'll all have to summon as much power from the elements as you can, much more than you can possibly imagine. These powers were passed onto you by the gods. Use them to become the elements. Use them to become the gods!" She could sense their sceptical gazes on her. "I know this is asking a lot out of you, but we're out of other options."

The turtles weren't sure if they could muster that kind of power. It was crazy enough that they could use the powers of the four elements, but now they had to become the very gods of the elements themselves? They were beginning to wonder if they were going to make it out of this alive at all. They looked to their friends, who gave them all hopeful glances; Splinter's being the most encouraging. They looked back at Taliama's face, pleading to them with her pale eyes.

Leo nodded and came up to Taliama, kissing her lightly on the forehead. "Okay, Tali, we'll do it. Just promise me you'll be careful playing your part too."

She nodded lightly. "Okay." She looked focused and determined again. "Everyone get into position!"

They made their way around the rim of the volcano, painfully aware of the empty abyss that waited below them. The goddess kept striking at them as they made their way to form the stance they took when finishing off the shadow Shredder, but they managed to defend themselves as best they could. Taliama stood in front of their friends, her mind in a deep trance.

"Oh, spirits of my people," she chanted, "Oh, mighty gods that protect the isle of Thear, we beg for your assistance in this solemn hour. The demon goddess has been freed into the mortal world, and she threatens chaos onto the world. Give your strength to open the seal and send her back to the world of darkness from whence she came! Give the Chosen Ones your strength and yield your full power, the power to become the gods of the elements and to become one of the elements themselves. Please give us your power, so that we may fulfill the prophecy and save this world from ruin! NOW, SPIRITS! HEED MY CALL AND OPEN THE SEAL AND AWAKEN THE CHOSEN ONES TO THE POWER OF THE GODS!"

When they closed their eyes, the turtles felt an odd sensation in their souls. They could feel the echo of the elements within them, much stronger than before. It beat within their hearts and flowed within their breath and blood. Their skin pricked with a brilliant sensation, and they could their skin forming into the substance of their elements themselves. The splash of water; the sturdiness of the rocks and tree trunks and the gentle brush of the leaves and petals; the blowing of the breeze; the hot, wild dancing of the flames; they felt it _being _them. As Taliama's words took root, the turtles were levitated into the air and their form was changing. Leonardo's body transformed into pure liquid; Donatello's body transformed into pure rock and stone and tree and plant roots grew all over his body; Michelangelo's body transformed into the thin outline of a stormy gale; and Raphael's body transformed into pure searing fire. They had become one with their element, the gods of the island.

Taliama's body glowed in a pure white light, and she cast her hands to the vortex below, sending a stream of pure light into it, warping it into a vortex of light that spun in the opposite direction.

The goddess glowered at her, feeling herself being pulled in. She fought the pull as hard as she could. "_You little brat!_" she screamed, "_I will not have you ruin my plans!_" She cast a sharp claw at Taliama, but Splinter managed to block it with the shield magic Taliama had given him before.

"Do not give up, princess," Splinter said, encouraging her, "Just keep your focus and your energy on the task of hand."

The gods of the elements had turned their attention to the demon goddess, with their power at its greatest, they each sent a blast of pure elemental energy towards her, more powerful than they had ever used before. The goddess shrieked in agony as the power clasped around her, pulling her towards the seal below. Taliama's body beamed with sweat as she struggled to keep the gateway open.

"_No!_" The goddess cried. "_I am not finished with you yet!_"

In a burst of power, she broke herself free of the gods' control and sent her magic towards each of them. They did not move of break free of their control, but they could tell there was something wrong.

"Something's wrong," April noted, "They don't seem to be vulnerable to her attack, but they're not responding."

August took a long look at them and gasped. "Look!"

He pointed in their direction and they watched horrified as the goddess's work began to unfold. Each of their elemental bodies was beginning to deteriorate thanks to her magic. The water god's body was slowly evaporating into the air; the earth god's body was breaking apart bit by bit; the wind god's body was calming its breezing into a still nothingness; and the fire god's body was dimming down into a small flicker.

"What's happening to them?" Penny cried.

"_The god's host bodies may have become one with their elements and have gained unlimited power,_" the goddess said, "_But they are still mere mortals under there and by becoming one with their element, they have lost their sense of self. They won't be able to fight back against my magic, and soon they'll disappear into nothingness._"

She cackled into the air as her talons tightened the hold on her magic, as if to choke the remaining lifeout of the gods. The whispers from their elements sounded like pain. She was about to finish them off when she felt the sharp tip of a spearhead strike her in the neck. She was not in great pain, but it caused her to lose her focus and the gods were free, but were silent and unable to move in their recovery.

She turned to whoever had thrown the spear. Splinter was recovering from the throw, with a look of rebellion in his eyes. The goddess hissed and plunged towards him, talons outstretched, but he managed to hold her off with shield magic.

"I do not care if you are a demon goddess," Splinter roared, "I will not allow you to hurt my sons!" Ignoring the goddess's assault, he called out to them. "Leonardo! Donatello! Michelangelo! Raphael! Remember who you are, my sons! You are not elemental gods, you are ninja turtles and we are family! So please, regain yourselves and come back to me." Tears were falling from his eyes as he held the goddess off, but she had caught him off guard for one moment and sent him flying into the others, blood trickling from his head.

A tremor shook through the gods as they watched this act unfold and they were no longer gods in mind.

"Master Splinter!" they all cried, and in their fury, they unleashed all of their fury and struck the goddess within their elemental magic. She was encircled with red, blue, yellow, and green energy as she fell, and they could feel all of their strength leaving them as they were lowered to the ground and rushed over to their sensei. Their bodies were still elemental, but their minds were of mortal men again.

They lifted Splinter up carefully and checked his head. Leonardo used his powers of water to gently wash away the blood and heal the wound.

"Master Splinter, are you okay?" Leo asked anxiously.

Splinter slowly placed a hand over Leonardo's arm and smiled. "I've been worse, but yes, I am fine." He looked towards Taliama and saw she was on the ground, breathing heavily. "Don't worry about me, my sons. Go help the princess."

Leonardo gently placed his sensei into the hands of their and rushed over to Taliama with his brothers. Her power was still focused on the portal, but she was grower weaker every second.

"I can't...hold it open much longer..." she gasped. "My power isn't enough."

"Just hold on, Tali," Leo assured her, "You can do this."

But time was running out for them as the goddess rose back into the fight, cackling as her entire body was shrouded in darkness, her eyes glowing so red they were blinded to them. Her shape was becoming less and less distinguishable by the minute. She was gathering her power and they were all helpless to move under her spell. She was focusing all of her energy on one last attack, now that Taliama was losing her power and the vortex was switching between portal and black whole. They could feel the weight of darkness consume them, the heat of her gathering energy, and they feared that it was the end.

The demon goddess was about to deliver her great strike when a great form of light suddenly appeared from under them, rising over them in the form of a great dove and tackling the goddess head-on, sending her back. They could barely look at the light around the shape to see who or what it was, but Taliama could sense the aura within.

"Grandmother?" she gasped.

The High Priestess Yoona turned to her granddaughter and spoke in a holy voice. "Do not give up, Taliama. I sense great power within you, but it will not be enough to defeat the goddess alone. I shall use my power to seal her away for good, so that she may perish and never enter this world again. Chosen Ones, call on the power of the gods one more time and seal her away with my power."

"But...what about you, Grandmother?"

Yoona smiled. "Do not worry about me. I am only doing my job as the High Priestess and as a grandmother."

"_Such tough talk for such a frail old woman,_," the goddess scoffed, entangling her darkness in the High Priestess's light. "_You still look to the gods, believing that they shall free you from the nothingness of death, but you know nothing. You're just a weak crone who cannot break the ties to her destiny._"

"I do this not to fulfill the prophecy of out people," Yoona roared, "I do this so that my people may have a future not plagued by you, so that my granddaughter may have a future!"

"_You fool! This very moment shall be the end of time!_"

Yoona aimed her staff at the demon goddess. "CHOSEN ONES, NOW!"

Using all of their power, all of their very might, the turtles unleashed the powers of water, earth, air, and fire at the demon goddess. One with the elements and utilizing their full untainted energy, they felt that, together, they were felling the malevolent deity with the essence of the world itself. With the four elements focused on the goddess' degrading body, Yoona combined the four elements with her power of light and trapped the goddess within, using the rest of her power to help Taliama open the seal, and with her might, the princess released the seal in a mighty pillar of light that obscured the High Priestess and the demon goddess from view. Their allies clung to each other as they felt a great pull coming from this pillar of light, pulling in these deity beings of darkness and light and the light absorbing the island itself.

Taliama, however, felt like there was something wrong. She could feel the weight of the entire island collapsing and her grandmother's aura disappearing along with the goddess's. Tears pricked her eyes as she feared the worst. When the pillar of light was gone, the turtles returned to the terrapin forms and collapsed on the ground. Taliama sensed for her grandmother, but the aura was faint. She could sense her struggling with the goddess in a place she couldn't sense. Where was her grandmother?

She suddenly heard a voice call into her mind. "_Granddaughter, I am sorry to have to leave you now, but I must do it for the sake of the future. The goddess is too strong to simply be sealed away, so I have to take her into the realm with me. _

_There is also something I must warn you of, child. This is the island I call my home, home to the gifts of magic and the link to the immortal world. But as long as this island exists as the demon's portal into the mortal world, she shall always find a way to escape. I must wash away this island away from the world, just as it should be for a world unready to handle magic and the immortals. But the people and the animals shall be safe, child. The life of this island shall be preserved, but you must use your power to find a new home, where a bright future away from prophecies and predetermined destinies block you from living your true path. Although I have sealed myself away with the demon goddess, I will not remain trapped with her and will be reunited with your mother soon. Take care of yourself in the new world, my love. I shall always be with you._

Taliama felt herself on the brink of collapsing, but was held up by her beloved Leonardo. He and his brothers didn't need to read her mind to know what she had heard. They could see it in her teary pale eyes. The others gathered around her for comfort and she accepted it. She didn't need to act strong at a time like this.

"What now, Tali?" Leo silently asked.

Taliama closed her eyes and sensed the aura of every life form on this island. All of the people, the animals, the plant life, everything that couldn't die in her power if her island was going to be sinking into the ocean. She could already feel the waves encasing the shores of the island and growing higher. She reached out with her power as far out as she could go and felt the faint aura of the mainland close by. The land was dry and bleak, but it would do.

When she had her energy back, Taliama was lifted up and she turned to the others urgently. "Grandmother has told me that the gateway between the mortal and immortal world must permanently be closed," she explained, "but in order to do that, the island must be sealed away with it, so moments from now, the entire island will sink under the waves."

All of their eyes went wide with shock and fright, but they waited for her to finish.

"If I want to preserve the life of this island and the people who live on it, I have to use my power to move it all from here to the mainland."

"But the closest place from here would be Africa," Don noted. "Are you sure your people will be okay there?"

"It may take some time, but we'll survive." She took Leonardo's hand. "I'm going to need your help. It will take all of our power to do this. You won't be able to use your powers again if you do this."

Raph took Taliama's free hand. "Ah, I didn't think we'd be keeping them for long anyway."

Mikey took Raphael's hand and Donatello's hand. "Why is it you can never keep your powers after the quest is over?"

Don took Leonardo's free hand and completed the circle. "You've been playing way too many video games, Mikey."

The five of them stood there silently in the circle they had created, interlocked by their joined hands. Where they joined, the others placed their own hands, hoping to add a little of their own energy to the circle. All twelve of them closed their eyes and felt the mass of life around them. Every single piece of life popped up as little dots on their sonar of aura, and every piece they found was brought into their circle of energy, every person, every animal, and every plant to be saved. The five of them focused their last and most powerful remains of energy, and water, earth, air, fire, and spirit became one. There was a bright flash of light, and the world zoomed around them.

They could feel themselves being pulled across a current of twisted light and energy, a current that seemed to warp time and space itself. They were being pulled in every direction, but they held on to each other as tightly as they could, keeping together their net of light as the felt the remains of the island of Thear sinking below the sea.

"Just hold on!" Taliama shouted. "I can sense that we've nearly reached our destination!"

The current around them suddenly warped and twisted much more violently than usual and then suddenly split into two: one very short tunnel, and one that stretched on for miles. They weren't sure, but they felt an immense pull between the two tunnels. They tried to hold together, but the pull was too strong. They could feel their net of life slipping into the short tunnel, remaining intact even after the tunnel started pulling them apart. They all tried to hang on to each other as the force broke their connection apart.

The turtles and Taliama held steadily together, but the others weren't so lucky. Casey and April slipped away into the longer tunnel, followed by August, Cornelius, Penny, and finally Splinter. Ukili had slipped into the other when she was forced out of Penny's grasp, and Penny tearfully waved goodbye to each other.

The pull between the tunnels was growing even stronger and the turtles found they could no longer fight against it. Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael slipped into the long tunnel after their friends, leaving Leonardo and Taliama to fight between the two pulls.

"I won't let go!" Leo shouted as he grasped Taliama's hand. "I'll never let go!"

Taliama looked tearfully back at him. She made her way closer to Leonardo, fighting the current as hard as she could. They grasped each other's shoulders tightly, fighting back the pain of each other's grips and lightly pressed a kiss on each other's lips, the thin brush between them all they could muster in this tight pull. As they pulled away, the current overcame them and they slipped away from each other.

Leonardo tried frantically to take hold of Taliama again as she was being pulled away from him, but all he could grasp was the rainbow feather necklace that slipped from her neck under his pull. He was sent flying into the long tunnel away from as she fell in the opposite direction, every second the pull increasing the gap between them. Leonardo cried out in agony as her form became smaller and smaller from his view, but the roar of the vortex muted his cry of despair. He blinked away his tears as she disappeared from his view and all he could see left was a world of white.


	13. Epilogue

Everyone grumbled and moaned in pain as they finally came to, rubbing their heads and eyes after enduring such an impact. They all weakly raised themselves up to their feet, trying to return their states of mind to the real world. The space around them felt small and cramped as they felt themselves huddled around each other. They could feel a change in the air, shifting from the open, clean, blossom-like incense of the rainforest to the stuffy, cramped, metallic dust of the city. It was hard for them to re-enter the world of reality after such an extensive time in the dream world of the island.

Casey was the first one to notice where they been placed after he had awoken. "Look!" he cried out to everyone.

They were back in April's apartment, left untouched by time. It was midday, and they looked outside to see the heavy stream of traffic move across the streets of the city, mingled in with the crowds of people on the sidewalks going about their daily lives. They were oblivious to the cataclysm that they had helped prevent; unaware of the mysticism of the small island that once lay at the crossing of the equator and the prime meridian.

"I can't believe we're really back home," April gasped. She checked the date and time on her digital clock. It was the exact same day and time that Cornelius had come over to see her and her uncle with Casey and Penny in his grasp, not too long before they hopped onto that plane that crashed and left them on the crazy adventure. It had felt like weeks or even months since then.

"Ah, back here, are we?" Cornelius said, looking amused and straightening his clothes. "Well, then, since I'm back to where all this poppycock started, I am finally convinced that I had somehow knocked myself out at Miss O'Neil's apartment and had simply dreamed the whole adventure up in my aching head." He was laughing at himself. "As if all of that really happened, mysterious islands, mythical savages, a satanic deity, and four adolescent mutated turtles and rat who studied ninjitsu..." He trailed off as he turned around and spotted the four turtles and their sensei behind them. "...or maybe not." He hung his head despairingly. "Perhaps I should check myself into a mental institution."

August patted his colleague reassuringly. "Don't worry, Cornelius, there won't be any need for that. For the most part, I'm surprised how well you took it all in the end."

Cornelius flushed and straightened out his clothes, looking away in embarrassment. "Well..." he cleared his throat. "I supposed someone had to keep a straight sense of mind in all of that insanity." He was so busy explaining himself that he didn't notice everyone rolling their eyes at him.

Once everything had settled down, April had decided to prepare tea for everyone in celebration for helping save the world from utter destruction. Everyone had taken seats either at her table or on her couch, the kitchen and coffee table full of snacks. Everyone had joined in except for Leonardo, who was nowhere to be seen. April had considered going to look for him, but Splinter stopped here.

"We must give Leonardo some time to himself," he explained, "He has a strong heart, but once it has been broken, it is not easy to mend." He had learned that all too well from his master, Hamato Yoshi and his lover Tang Shen.

They all decided to leave Leonardo in peace, but he was not easily forgotten. As the day went on, they all went over some of their fondest memories of the memories and comforted each other to the ones that were not so fond.

"Do you think you're going to be okay, Miss April?" Penny asked, referring to the demon goddess taking over April's body.

April looked sullen. "I'm not sure," she replied, "It was really scary, I'll tell you that, having someone taking over my body, controlling my thoughts and feelings, manipulating me so they could take advantage of my emotions. When she took over, I had no sense of who I was, like the times you all tried to wake me up were what triggered me back into existence." Her fists tightened in fright. "I don't think I'll ever get over that. It's probably going to give me nightmares for a really long time."

Casey put a reassuring hand over April's and smiled at her. "Yeah, well, I'll be sure to get rid of those nightmares outta your head too, April. You've got nothing to be afraid of while I'm next to ya."

April looked at Casey gratefully and lovingly. "Thank you, Casey. That means a lot."

Penny was jumping up and down. "And I'll be sure to get rid of the bad dreams with some magic spells!"

Cornelius simply rolled his eyes at her. "Such a wild imagination...Oh, well, I suppose children will be children."

As it grew later in the day, Cornelius and August decided to leave, thanking April for the tea. When the turtles and Splinter left shortly after, April was left alone with Casey and Penny. Casey was thinking about taking Penny back to her secret hideaway while he went back home, but Penny was surprisingly against it, clinging to April and saying that she wanted to stay with April that night. Surprisingly to Casey, April had agreed, offering to share her bed with the both of them. She normally wouldn't have offered something so peculiar, but they could see it in her eyes that the demon goddess was still haunting her in her mind. For the first time since she was little, she was afraid of sleeping in the dark by herself. When nightfall came, the bright moonlight revealed the lying figures of April, Casey, and Penny sleeping softly under the covers of April's bed, April wrapped gently in Casey arms while Penny slept comfortably between them.

On the rooftops of the moonlit city, a solitary turtle was sitting silently, headed tilted up towards the moon. His shallow face was marked by melancholy, his eyes red from countless. He held in his hand a necklace decorated with an assortment of coloured feathers and beads, mingled together to look like a jewelled rainbow. His heart was aching deep inside as he longed for the owner of the necklace; he begrudged himself for not being able to say goodbye to her. Behind him, his three brothers watched silently, not sure what they could say or do to heal him. All they could do was watch and wait for him to heal himself, but they weren't sure how long that could take.

Time had passed since the lost island of Thear had summoned the turtles to fulfill the ancient prophecy. August and Cornelius would once in a while drop in a line, telling them of their explorations into the lost civilizations of South America and excavations to Africa. August was still his old adventurous but sensible self, but Cornelius had become more active and less rigid since they had first met, but off course he denied with his strict British manner. Casey and April's relationship had become a lot more serious since the adventure and, deciding it was time, they eventually got married.

The police had eventually discovered Penny's secret hideaway after a widespread search due to a higher crime rate, and was unfortunately put into an orphanage with the rest of her friends. Luckily, she, Spike, Petal, Gadget, and all of the others managed to keep their belongings safely hidden away from police eyes, so they thought of their being put into the orphanage as a simple relocation, and they continued on with their childish acts when no one was looking. This, however, did not last long for Penny, for as soon they heard what had happened, Casey and April immediately adopted her into their family and she was ecstatic. Taking her belongings and saying goodbye to her friends, she moved in with them into the apartment above April's antique store, where April converted her study into Penny's bedroom and placed all of her books and toys in there for her to enjoy. The only thing that made Penny unhappy was that she had to start going to school at her new parents' insistence.

Down in the sewers, life carried on as usual for the turtles. They continued their focus on their training and spend their free time tinkering with gadgets or reading comic books. They had not spoken much about the adventure for fear of upsetting Leonardo, who had hung Taliama's necklace above the mantelpiece where his prized swords lay. In spite of this, their memories of the adventure had never left them, and somewhere deep inside of them, they could still feel the power of the elements flowing in their blood.

After their training, Donatello had been sifting through a month-old copy of _National Geographic_ he needed to catch up onwhen a certain article had caught his attention and, as he speed-read through it, he froze.

"Everyone, come quick!" he shouted, "You're not going to believe this!"

Everyone came running towards him, wondering what trouble Donatello had discovered.

"What's wrong, Donnie?" Leo asked, as serious as ever.

"You are not going to believe what I just found in this magazine!"

Wondering what it was, Michelangelo took a quick glance at the cover and looked awkwardly at his brother when he discovered that the cover had a picture of topless tribal African women on it. "Uhh...dude, if you're smart enough to understand the culture of native tribes and stuff, I don't think that kind of thing" he pointed to the cover, "should freak out at this point."

Raph smacked his brother over the head. "Get your head out of the freaking gutter, Mikey!"

"No, no, no, guys," Don said, "I'm talking about one of the articles I found in this month's issue." He flipped through the pages until he found the one he was looking for. "Okay, here it is," He cleared his throat and began to read aloud:

"_Experts are only now just uncovering the lost history of this undocumented tribe, recently discovered on the west coast of Africa. Some time earlier in the year, the land on which they had been found had undergone an unnatural phenomenon that had turned the dry, lifeless land into lush green rainforests filled with clean lakes and rivers used by the native animals and ones only recently documented within their rainforest. Specialists who have worked on interpreting the language of the tribe have informed us that they call themselves the people of Thear,_"

Don heard his family gasp in surprise and could sense Leonardo listening intently now. He continued:

"_informing us that in their tribe's past, they had lived on an island paradise that acted as a gateway between the mortal world and the world of their gods, but were forced to move to other land when their island was forced to sunk under the waves in order to seal the gateway between the worlds and prevent a malevolent deity from destroying all life on Earth. The legitimacy of their history remains unconfirmed._"

They all rolled their eyes. Of course modern media wouldn't believe their story to be true and would interpret it as myth and legend.

"_The tribe lives peacefully with their neighbours, sharing food, water, and whatever goods they can, but says they are prepared to fight back when war is imminent, as their tribe contains a sufficient numbers of warriors both male and female, apparently looking at both genders as equals. It is lead by their chieftain, Zohra, who says that he and his people thank their gods every day for giving them a place to live without fear of demonic spirits. We spoke with his daughter, the High Priestess Taliama,_"

Leonardo's eyes went wide and his heart was racing.

"_who says that she will be passing on her knowledge to the women of her tribe, but that she plans to go to the United States within a month for an education. Her visual impairment will make this a difficult task, but she says that she is prepared for the trials that await her. She also wants to give her best wishes to someone named 'Leonardo'._"

Don's grin was wide. "This volume was printed a month ago! She could already be here by now!"

Raph nudged Leonardo in the shoulder. "Here that, buddy? You'll get to see your girlfriend again!"

But Leo was glumly looking down. "Yeah, but they never said she would be studying in New York. She could be on the other side of the country for all we know."

Mikey shook his head. "Geez, Leo, way to kill the mood."

"What do you plan to do, my son?" Splinter asked.

Leo sighed. "I don't know, Master." He headed towards the doorway. "I'm going out for a bit. I just need some time to think."

With that, he left the lair with his family feeling unsure what to do about him.

He stood over the rooftops of the city, basking in the moonlight. He had not seen Taliama in the longest time since they were separated in the dimensional portal. How would she react to seeing him again? Would she be studying in New York? Could she be able to survive on her own without her eyesight and the over stimulus of the city blocking her senses? Did she still feel the same way about him after being separated for so long, or had she been betrothed to someone of her father's choosing? He clutched his head in annoyance as the never-ending set of questions plagued his mind

He was about to get up and leave when a pair of hands suddenly came over his hands, and he would have flipped the intruder onto their back had he not recognised the voice that came with them.

"Guess who?" she chirped.

He spun around, eyes wide and jaw hanging, his heart beating all over. It was Taliama. He stood gazing at her in the light of the moon, dressed in a thin blouse and denim capris. He couldn't form any sensible words as he gazed at her; she looked surprisingly attractive in modern day clothing.

"Wha..." He tried to say, "But...how did...?"

"I just got here only a few days ago. August and Cornelius had arranged everything I need to study here and I'll be staying at April's for the time being. They were going to inform you, but I wanted it to be a surprised." She smiled devilishly at him; he thought he was going to lose it.

Leo quickly pulled her into an embrace and brushed his fingers through her long black hair. "You have no idea how much I've missed you." Tears were already slipping from his eyes.

Taliama happily cried into his shoulder, stroking his shell. "It's okay, Leo. Now we can be together."

"I just hope that the tribe can carry on without you."

"My grandmother sacrificed her life so that I could have a future outside of the walls of our island and I won't be wasting a minute of it," she reassured him, "I'll learn everything I can about the outside world and help my people along the way, but there's no one I want to share my future with more than you, Leonardo."

He blushed at the complement. "But what about your father? Has he disapproved?"

"I told him that Grandmother died to give all of us a future, and that we all have to move on if we're able to use it. He was reluctant, but he accepted this and let me come to America. Our tribe shall find new heirs to the throne soon enough."

Leonardo nodded. He knew her father must have been very reluctant to have her go, but he and the rest of the tribe would have to learn to move on if they wanted to keep themselves and their history alive. The past is only used as a tool to better shape oneself and the future.

Feeling uplifted, he picked Taliama up in his arms and kissed her smoothly on the lips, missing the taste of her kiss too much. She happily complied, but was confused by his actions.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

He smiled at her. "I have something of yours that I should give back. I could just run back down and get it for you, but the city is no place to be wandering around at night. Anyone living in New York should know that."

She lightly punched him in the air. "Hey, I can defeat any fighter in this city who would dare try to hurt me, and they'd end up regretting for a lifetime."

Leo chuckled. "I know, but you have to understand that fighting in my world works differently than it does in yours. I should demonstrate that to you and teach how real men and women fight and defend themselves in New York City."

She smiled devilishly at him. "I'd be honoured to accept that challenge, Leonardo."

As they headed back down into the lair together, they shared another deep kiss, indulging in each other's auras. Even though the island had vanished under the sea and his powers over water were long gone, Leonardo and his brothers could still feel the rivers, roots, winds, and flames in their veins, the wild beating of the tribal drums and chanting in their ears, and the mystical remains of the island of Thear and the four elements in their hearts.


End file.
